Curious how to pay for college without loans? Check out this post where I share my secrets for graduating college without debt.
College can be very expensive nowadays, but there are many ways to get a great education for a reduced price. If you play the game right, you can even get it for free or get paid to go to college! Yes, you heard me right. There are ways to profit from attending college.
How to Pay for College by Reducing the Cost
One of the easiest ways to pay for college is to reduce the cost. Here are some hacks to do just that.
Think Strategically About Where you Go To School
Some careers require that you go to a specific school. Some companies only recruit from specific schools. If you want to be a doctor, lawyer, or consultant, it may make sense for you to go to a top school. However, if you plan to be just about anything else, you usually do not need to go to a specific (and expensive) university. For example, if you plan to be a public school teacher, you do not need to attend a top school. In fact, if you do go to a top school and then get a job that doesn’t make much, you’ll be making the same salary as your coworker that went to a state school for a fraction of the price.
So think strategically about where you go to school. The money you spend now will cut into your future earnings. If you’re going to go to an expensive school, you better be pretty darn sure you’ll get a high salary when you graduate. If you don’t, you’ll be hurting financially…
Go to an In-State University
One way to reduce the cost of college is to go to school within the state where you reside. If you don’t attend a school where you reside, you have to pay out-of-state tuition, which is more expensive.
Go to a Public School
Public schools (like state schools) are cheaper than private alternatives. There are many great public schools that you can go to to save on the cost of tuition.
Start with a Junior College and Transfer After 2 Years
Many people look down on junior colleges. However, the only degree that matters is the one that you get your diploma from. So, why not get your general education classes out of the way at a fraction of the price? You can do this by attending a junior college.
Get Free Money with Individual Development Accounts
Many people aren’t aware of this, but many counties in the US are part of a federal program known as Individual Development Accounts (IDA). Basically, this is a saving program that offers a risk-free 200% guaranteed rate of return. Once someone applies and is accepted into this program, they save a certain amount of money ($2,000, for example), and the program will match that money 200% ($4,000 in this case). There are some limitations. For example, the money has to be used for someone to go to school, buy their first home, or start a business. To see if your area has IDA accounts, simply do a Google Search for “Individual Development Accounts” + “Your City Name.”
Live at Home
Living on campus or away from home can be an exciting experience, but it’s also expensive. If you’re trying to save money, consider living at home with your parents or another relative while you go to college.
House Hack
If you don’t want to live at home, consider house hacking. House hacking is basically finding ways to reduce your living expenses or even get them for free. One way to do this is to buy or rent an apartment or house with multiple bedrooms and rent them out to other people or other college students. Sometimes the rent that you collect from your roommates ends up being enough to cover the mortgage or rent, allowing you to live rent-free.
Be a Resident Advisor (RA)
When you’re first starting college, this probably won’t be an option for you, but once you’ve been at the school, you can apply to be an RA. Usually, RAs get the cost of living in the dorm waived, allowing them to save money.
How to Pay for College by Getting College for Free
If it’s free, it’s for me! There are many ways to get free college. You may be surprised by some of these options.
Merit-based Scholarships
If you have a high grade point average (GPA), you may be eligible for merit-based scholarships. Basically, these are scholarships that are given to people that had academic success in high school. Studying and getting good grades may seem dull, but you may rethink that thought if it could save you tens of thousands of dollars in college. For example, I got merit-based scholarships that saved me over $20,000 for my undergraduate degree and an additional $20,000 for my master’s degree.
The money I saved allowed me to pay cash for a dream summer abroad in Paris, France, when I was in college and a down payment on my first home. The moral of this story: Don’t underestimate the power of good grades.
Sports-based Scholarships
If you excel at sports, you may be eligible for scholarships to continue being an athlete in college. Working hard and practicing a sport may get tiring when your friends spend their after-school time watching TV and hanging out with friends, but again, if it could save you tens of thousands of dollars, it may be worth the sacrifice.
Private Scholarships
If you don’t have a top GPA or excel at sports, that doesn’t mean there aren’t scholarships available to you. Private scholarships each have unique guidelines that help them select who will win the money. Sometimes it’s based on financial need, and other times it’s based on interests. The hardest part with private scholarships is finding the best ones for you and then applying for them.
Need-based Scholarships, Grants, and Aid
If you come from a low-income family, you may be in luck with paying for college. In addition to scholarships, there are also grants that benefit people who couldn’t normally afford to go to college. One of the most important parts of getting need-based scholarships is filling out the FAFSA.
School-based Scholarships
Once you decide on a school, you should talk to the financial aid counselor. You should also spend some time on the financial aid section of your school’s website. Here you can learn about the policies and procedures they use to select and award scholarships.
GI Bill
If you served in the military, you can get access to free education through the GI Bill. Alternatively, if you cannot find a way to pay for college and you don’t want to go into debt, you can consider joining the military. Once you’ve served, you can use the GI benefit.
How to Get Paid to go to College
Even better than free college is profiting from going to college! You heard that right, here’s how.
Stack The Strategies We’ve Discussed
When I tell people that I got paid to go to college, most people’s first reaction is that I am lying. The truth is, getting paid to go to college is easier than it seems. Basically, all you need to do is combine multiple of the resources listed here. For example, I started by getting a merit-based full-ride scholarship that covered all of my tuition. That made my college tuition-free but didn’t pay me much extra. So, to cover the additional costs, I lived at home and also applied for as many private scholarships and school-based scholarships as possible.
Work Full-time for a University that Offers Tuition Remission
Many universities offer tuition for free to their employees. So, if you find a school that you are interested in attending, you can see if they offer tuition remission. If they do, try to get a job there. If they pay you a salary and also pay your tuition, you are getting paid to go to school.
Work Full-time for a Company that Offers Tuition Remission
Some companies offer tuition for free to their employees. When you are exploring job opportunities, look for this benefit before accepting an offer if you know you plan on going back to school. If they pay you a salary and also pay your tuition, you are getting paid to go to school.
Also, if you are a parent with college-aged children, you can also see if your company offers a dependent benefit that you could use to help your children get their college at a reduced price.
