Tuition fees are not always clear, because once financial aid and institutional grants are included in the bill, many families will not pay the indicated price.

Colleen Paparella Ganjian, founder of DC College Consulting, said, "I suggest all families fill in the net price calculator of each school under consideration on the website so as to know as much as possible the costs involved in various options."

The net price is the amount paid by students in one academic year after deducting scholarships and grants. In essence, the net price is the final price that a family can expect to pay, which is usually lower than the published price.

The university scorecard of the Ministry of Education includes a link to the school net price calculator. Federal guidelines require colleges and universities to provide online net price calculators. These calculators are suitable for first-time full-time undergraduates and generate estimated values based on information provided by students or parents.

? Which universities are the cheapest?

Speaking of published prices, attending a public school in this state as a student may be the cheapest option. Johnson said that this is because "everyone who goes to these schools is actually getting a scholarship-a discount on the education expenses paid by taxpayers."

He said that students who choose to study abroad will lose this subsidy. However, some regions and states have tuition reciprocal programs. For example, under the New England Student Program, residents of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont are eligible for discounted tuition at out-of-state public colleges and universities in New England.

Prices of public schools vary across the country. According to the data of American College Board, Wyoming's state schools, followed by Florida, have the lowest average tuition in 2020-202 1 4-year public universities. On average, New Hampshire and Vermont are the states with the highest tuition and fees announced by students in the state.

Compared with other universities in the state, the tuition and fees of students in the state of flagship universities are usually higher. For example, the state price of $202 1-2022-65438+09698 announced by the University of Virginia is 68% higher than the state price of $65438 +0 1 720 announced by James Madison University.

"If you are considering schools with different tuition fees in the state, the question is whether the more expensive university you are looking for can provide more value because the courses it offers are worth paying a little more," Johnson said.

Higher education experts say that students should not exclude private schools because these institutions usually offer tuition discounts, which may make them compete with the prices of public schools.

The practice of private institutions offering grants, scholarships and postgraduate scholarships to offset the marked price is called tuition discount, which began in the 1960s and became more common as an admission tool in the 1960s and 1990s.

According to the report of the National Association of Business Officials in Colleges and Universities, private institutions have discounted the tuition fees of new students, which is estimated to hit a record high of nearly 54% in 2020-202 1 year. With the persistence of the coronavirus pneumonia-19 epidemic, many universities offer tuition concessions and exemptions, and provide tuition fees and scholarships free of charge by lottery to encourage students to be vaccinated with coronavirus pneumonia-19 vaccine.

? Which universities are the most expensive?

According to American news reports, the highest-priced universities are Columbia University in new york and Franklin Marshall College in Pennsylvania. The marked prices of these institutions in 20021-2022 were $63,530 and $6340 1 respectively, but many students paid less than the published amount.

Amy Goodman Miller, a university admissions consultant at IvyWise, an admissions consultancy in new york, said: "Usually, private colleges of arts and sciences offer the highest bids, but that doesn't mean that they won't compete with other universities, especially if you are eligible for financial aid and scholarship opportunities."

Some schools that announce high prices offer generous financial aid programs.

In fact, Yale University in Connecticut, Harvard University in Massachusetts, and Stanford University in California, to name a few, all meet the needs of students' full argumentation without increasing any grant loans. Although the tuition and fees charged by these schools in the 20021-2022 academic year ranged from $59,950 at Yale University to $55,587 at Harvard University, they were among the best value-for-money schools in American journalism. The ranking takes into account the academic quality and the total net cost of attending school (including accommodation, transportation, books and other expenses) of students who receive average needs-based financial assistance.

For example, in the 2020-202 1 academic year, Yale University provided 57% full-time undergraduates with needs-based grants. After receiving needs-based funding, the average attendance fee for that year was $65,438+$08,826.

Therefore, experts say that students should not only pay attention to the marked price, but also pay attention to the net price. Although some schools may look more expensive, their average cost may actually be lower.

"The pricing game is not very transparent. It's important to understand the price tag. It looks high and may not be what most students actually pay, "Johnson said. "

Sabrina Mainville of art institute of chicago, co-founder and chief operating officer of Price Computing Institute, said that it is the school with the highest net assets. The college is mainly an art school, namely Southern California Institute of Architecture.

She added that in terms of the average online price, the fees of Xiaowen College of Science are often higher. Mainville takes Oberlin College and Conservatory of Music in Ohio and Sarah Lawrence College in new york as examples. "Of course, these universities will provide many needy students with considerable financial assistance programs, but the fees charged to ordinary students are higher than what they pay in similar universities," she said.

? Which schools offer free tuition?

A few colleges and universities are free of tuition, but these institutions usually need jobs or services in exchange.

For example, students from the United States Naval Academy in Maryland and the United States Military Academy in new york need to find jobs after graduation. In return, tuition, room and board of these institutions are free. Three other service colleges have similar arrangements: the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado, the United States Coast Guard Academy in Connecticut and the United States Merchant Marine Academy in new york.

Other institutions that provide tuition-free education have set certain requirements, such as employment at school. Alice Lloyd College in Kentucky and Warren Wilson College in North Carolina require full-time undergraduates to work on campus for a certain period of time.