The 9 Costs of Attending College

One question I get asked a lot is, “Where do colleges come up with their cost of attendence?” That’s what they call their “COA.” There are nine categories of expenses in that “COA.” Let’s run through these costs of attending college.

One is TUITION, which is more expensive for private colleges and out-of-state public colleges, than in-state public colleges. Then there are FEES for everything: parking, student life, labs. You name it, there’s a fee for it.

There’s going to be ROOM; that’s the dorm where you sleep. There are more expensive and less expensive options: single, double, and triple rooms, newer and older buildings. There’s going to be BOARD; that’s the food that you eat. There are going to be more expensive and less expensive choices there as well.

Now those are the Direct Expenses you pay straight to the college. There are also Indirect Expenses like your TEXTBOOKS, which you can rent a lot cheaper online than by buying them at the college bookstore. There are going to be TRAVEL expenses to get to and from school: more expensive if you go far, less expensive if you stay close.

There’s going to be some amount of student LOAN INTEREST if you take out student loans. There are going to be PERSONAL expenses, like walking-around money and toiletries. And, there’s going to be some amount of SUPPLIES, like a laptop, graph paper, poster board: things you need to go to school. 

My point is, there are choices you can make to drive the cost of attendance up or down, even if the official COA reported by the college is the typical cost. So make smart choices, and if you have more questions about the costs of attending college, don’t hesitate to reach out to us at 732-556-8220. We are here to help.