Free Tuition for College?

College offers a wide range of courses, professors, research opportunities and unique networking experiences. The years you spend earning a degree don't just give you a nice diploma to hang on the wall-they transmit a sense of improved self, of education, and of ideas. Each student's motivation to attend college is different-some go because Mom and Dad say so, others want to get a job that pays more than minimum wage, while some people just want to fill in the gaps of their knowledge. It doesn't really matter why you want to go to college. If you want to go, you should be able to go. And you should be able to go at any age.

More and more "non-traditional" students are filling the seats in college courses as well. I'm one of them. Last fall I took a math class, to help me overcome some math anxiety leftover from a high school teacher who, if a girl got an answer wrong in class, accused us of "playing with Barbies too much last night." Nice, huh? My revenge was getting an "A" in the recent college course, and planning to take more courses through a non-traditional continuing education program at the same top state university. This past spring I took a Women's History course, just because. I was, by far, NOT the oldest person in class-there were plenty of students in their 30s, 40s-and even a few in their 60s.

If you feel like the lack of a degree-or the right degree-is holding you back, then you might want to consider college. Think it's too expensive? Think again: there are 5 colleges in the U.S. that offer free tuition if you're accepted. Free-no strings attached. EVERY student gets the free tuition. Each school has some differences, but the bottom line is that you only have to pay room, board, and books. And if you commute from home while juggling a family and school, you're only looking at books and commuting costs.

To learn more about these colleges, visit the links below:

Berea College:
http://www.berea.edu/Admissions/scholarship.htm

The Cooper Institute:
http://www.cooper.edu/administration/admissions/faqs.html

The Webb Institute:
http://www.webb-institute.edu/admissions/expenses.php

Alice Lloyd College:
http://www.alc.edu/

College of the Ozarks:
http://www.cofo.edu/scholarship.asp?page=4

Most of these colleges have fees, and many require acertain number of work hours in exchange for free tuition. But if you can avoid student loans, then this is a great way to get your degree. Of course, there are plenty of other ways to cut college bills, but the above gives you a unique strategy for getting ahead in today's world-without paying an arm and a leg. Going to college is like starting a business: you develop an idea, pick short- and long-term goals, have a financial plan for how this will advance your life, and you embark on the journey. What these six colleges offer is powerful: a way to get ahead, without falling behind financially.