How much is too much to spend on a degree

Was figuring that my degree will cost me about $25k, wow that is a lot of money. What do you guys consider too much to spend to earn your degree. (this is my bachelors I am working on).

 

Nitpicking a little and assuming a Bachelor degree at a reputable, RA institution, do you mean:

• How much is too much for me, specifically, to spend upon a degree for myself, or
• How much do I think is too much for someone else to spend upon his or her degree, or
• How much, absolutely, is too much for anyone to spend upon a degree?

The first should have no bearing upon your budget; the second, I can't say without knowing more about someone's finances and academic aspirations; and the third is probably arbitrary and meaningless.

 

Last year there was an article on the difference in earning power between those with Bachelor's degrees and those with just a high school education. Over a lifetime, people with degrees earned $300,000 more than those with just a high school diploma. There aren't many investments in this life that will pay back twelve dollars for each dollar you put in.

$25K for a 120-credit hour degree program figures to be about $625 a course. This is pretty reasonable, but you can save money by using credit-by-exam programs such as CLEP and DSST. I saved thousands of dollars, and several semesters worth of time, by taking CLEP exams instead of taking introductory classes online. Best of luck!

 

Hi - You're right. 25K is a lot of money. I don't know what you're studying or where but my guess is that you could get the same degree for less if you wanted to switch schools. Maybe you really like your school , their delivery method, instructors, etc. If so then it's worth the money. I'll also guess that over the course of your lifetime this degree will pay for itself many times over. You may need to think of your degree less as an expense and more as an investment.

 

Fortunato,

I am curious, how much did you spend for the MBA at Duke University?

Thanks..

 

What category? Business admin? CIS/MIS? Liberal arts? Engineering? Just my opinion, but the return on investment (to put it in strictly business terms) would be higher with some degrees/schools than others, and much easier to justify the cost.

For example, a good education from a reputable school that results in an electrical engineering degree is well worth $25K in my opinion. On the other hand, while a degree in general studies from any school is better than none at all, it isn't likely to set the room on fire regardless of school, and can be had for far less than 25K.

Best of luck to you, Xarick. I've read your thoughts and struggles over the months while searching for a degree path, and sincerely hope you find one that suits you. Take care!

 

sorry this is a bs in computer science.
and that is 25k after transfer credits.
Degree costs $280 per credit.
Seems a bit steep but it is a pure cs degree.

 

I spent about $2,000.00 for my degree at Troy University. Approximate $9,000.00 from DoD Tuition Assistance.

 

I think 25K for a BS is a lot of money. 10-15 seems more reasonable when you look at some good state schools.

 

My BA cost me $32,000 in the seat at a state university
My BS cost me $2,500 by DL at Excelsior Col.
My MA cost me $15,600 in the seat at a ranked 'Master's midwest'
My MBA (building on the MA at the same school) is going to cost me another $8400)

My wife's BA at the same in the seat as mine cost her $40,000 (she was on the five-year plan) but her BS at Excelsior didn't cost as much as mine - she was right around $2000.

Her MA (DL at a 'Master's midwest) is going to cost her a bit more than mine. We're expecting about $18,000 - she'll be in for about $60K too, before the PhD.

Too much? Not by my math but that's just me. I'm in for about $60K total. Considering that when I left the world of real work (9-5) in 1998 I was making all of $21,000 in my 30's with my HS diploma and "some college" and now I make well over $60K (cost of education) without a 9-5; I think I made the right investment for me. If I have 20 more years of work life left on completion of the MBA, I expect that I will earn (today's dollars) $1.9 million versus $0.6million (HSD) in just this time. That's an excess return of $1.3 million that I can attribute to the education that cost $60K. Pretty good return but then, this is a forward looking statement.

Now, the real investment return. My wife is much younger than I am. She likely won't earn the same level I do now because of experience but she has another 40 years left to get a return on her education. She's going to really beat my $1.3million for a $60K investment.

 

The rule of thumb I often hear from financial aid advisers is "Don't take student loans out for more than what you expect your first year's salary is going to be."

By that rule, $25,000 for a CS degree is a good deal as long as you think your salary is going to be higher than that.

However, getting a CS degree for 5 or 10k would be a much better deal.

 

I surprised you spent that much. Not including books, my expenses for all of my undergrad work and my first master's degree were under $100. The MPH is going to cost me about $4500-5000 after GI Bill reimbursements.

 

• AA -- free, courtesy of the California tuition system
  
• BS -- It's hard to calculate, since it was compiled over a 21 year span. But to finish it off at one college was around 13k. My out-of-pocket cost was probably around 6k because of tuition reimbursement by my employer and grant money from the state.
  
• MA -- 9k. My out of pocket cost was probably around 2.5k, due to tuition reimbursement by my employer.
  
• DBA -- the jury is still out, but it's very inexpensive, due to a scholarship from the school (40% off tuition) plus tuition reimbursement by my employer. I speculate that my out-of-pocket cost will be around 10k when it's all over.

So here's a rough calculation:

• AA free
• BS 6k
• MA 2.5k
• DBA 10k ??? (not graduated yet)

 

How much is too much?

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If you don't feel you can earn $25K more (plus an amount for the time and opportunity cost it takes to earn the degree) then you would not be wise to do it (also be sure to add in any carry costs, books, etc.). &amp;nbsp; I spent $1,200 on my undergrad (Regent-USNY) and $16,800 on an MBA.

There are also non-monetary considerations. That said, you will probably want (or need) an advanced degree, so it is wise to complete an undergraduate as cheaply as possible.

 

What's the name of the college/university??? And a link please...

 

There is a really good free pdf book you can read online or print off at the site www.lowestcostcolleges.com

Something else, even if you have your heart set on graduating from a certain school, I believe that there ARE WAYS to reduce the cost of your education WITHIN the institution you choose. I won't dump all of my cheapness on you here, but using transfer credits from a lower cost institution is just one way. BS or BA can be completed by a creative person from a very good school utilizing a full range of options.

KNOW the rules, USE the rules, SAVE lots of money.

Just go in with the right attitude; never pay sticker price.

 

I paid the following for classes:
About 5K for classes before COSC
1K for COSC admin fees
BS from COSC = 6K
MS from TUI = 7K
PhD from NCU = 25K (approximate)
BS/MBA from CCU = 3.5K

Totals = 41.5K for 2 BS, 2 masters, and a PhD. I have taken advantage of tuition assistance so I have paid about 5K so far and will pay about another 3K out of pocket.
My cost = about 8K. These numbers are just guesses and will change over time.

 

My recommendation is to go to the best school you can afford for your bachelors degree.

Check out "Spotlight on Statistics" from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
http://www.bls.gov/spotlight

The graph on this page shows median weekly earnings for "some high school" to "doctoral degree". These figures indicate that workers with bachelor’s degrees earn $19K more per year than workers with a high school education. If you figure out the loss of earnings while attending college (assuming you are not working) then you can figure out your ROI for your education. This should indicate to you that the $25K you plan to spend on a bachelor’s degree does not seem to be excessive. Your bachelors will also give you a 2% hedge against unemployment and you can also offset the loss of earning by working part-time while attending school.

The Occupational Outlook Handbook also gives some significant points about computer software engineers.
http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos267.htm

- Computer software engineers are projected to be one of the fastest growing occupations over the 2004-14 period.
- Very good opportunities are expected for college graduates with at least a bachelor’s degree in computer engineering or computer science and with practical work experience.
- Computer software engineers must continually strive to acquire new skills in conjunction with the rapid changes that are occurring in computer technology.

 

Take a piece of paper. Scribe a line, dividing said piece of paper in half. One one side, write down salary at current job. Multiply times number of years left on your career. Subtract zero for educational expenses (assuming you choose to keep your current job and not to go back to school). On the other side, write down your anticipated annual salary at your hoped-for new job after you've finished whatever amount of college and grad school you're looking at. Multiply the number of years left on your career after finishing all this nice schooling. Subtract your total tuition bill. Which is more?

 

Another way of looking at it is: Annual salary at new job (after schooling) minus annual salary at old job (without schooling) equals salary differential. Then take your total tuition ($25,000) and divide by your salary differential and that gives you your payback period.