How to Make College Affordable

In a previous article, I wrote about how community colleges offer certificate programs which give you a specific skill so you can do a job relatively quickly. Besides these certificate programs of which there are many, the community college is a good place to start your higher education. If you plan to go on to a university, you can get some requirements out of the way at a community college. It's inexpensive and near by, and doesn't require much more than your willingness to study.

What are some of the advantages of community college? You should always talk to a college counselor, but community colleges generally offer a series of courses designed to help you transfer to a four year university smoothly. You should be able to take college level English, Math, History, and Science much more cheaply than at a university.

It might be cheap, but the education is good. The instructors teaching English, math, history and biology at community colleges are highly educated. Many are new graduates from surrounding universities and so their teaching methods may be fresh and interesting.

Nobody's perfect. If you need to make up for some high school mistakes, it's much cheaper at the community college. Basic courses at a university cost just as much as college level courses, if they're offered. Get those mistakes out of the way at the community college. It's also a good place to make new mistakes. I have spent some time teaching at a local university. Many of my students were not ready for the responsibility. They failed classes, and wasted a lot of money in the process. Community college is a great place to find out what you want to do. It doesn't cost too much either.

Community college gives a student the opportunity to get college started without breaking the bank. It's a place to start figuring out what you want to do without a big financial commitment. Currently college costs about $23 a unit, so, for a 12 unit semester the cost for your courses should be around $300, and many people can qualify for financial assistance. If you compare this to the thousands that it could cost you to go to a university, even a state college, this is a great deal.

Look at your community college, it could be the start to a higher education!