<p>My kids had a list of selection criteria (their own criteria) in choosing colleges. </p>
<p>In my opinion, how easy or hard it is to find the cost on a website would not be one of the important criteria or a reason to knock a school off the list that meets my child’s selection criteria. If you are drawing inferences as to how the administration will be to deal with…you may be drawing inaccurate inferences from this one basis. If “ease of dealing with administration” is one of your selection criteria, then visit the school and approach many students on campus and have your child ask them their view on that. Likewise, visit that school’s forum on CC and ask current students and parents from that college about this. Otherwise, you may be making false assumptions. It reminds me of people who don’t like a tour guide at a college and use that to form an inference that they would not like the college or the kids who attend.</p>
<p>MSUDAd…I don’t consider the cost hidden just because it was hard for you to find it on their website. It may mean that the website designer did not make this as easy to find as would be ideal. But as others have said, you can use the website’s search function and usually get the cost that way. I can’t see knocking out a school that otherwise meets a kid’s selection criteria over this. Just my opinion.</p>
<p>PS, I don’t think it is semantics. Something is not purposely “hidden” as you conclude just because you had difficulty finding it. It was hard to find, sure. But did you try the search function on the college’s site? Did that not lead you to the cost? If the cost was never found on their site, then I could see it as an issue.</p>
<p>Eucalytptus- and what exactly is an “administrative flaw”?</p>
<p>As a parent of now graduated kids I find this a hilarious criterion for choosing a school. My kids saw no correlation between the quality of the marketing machine which is the admissions office, website, pretty face books, etc. and what goes on in the labs, libraries, and classrooms. Colleges which invest big bucks on the front end are often the ones skimping on the back end (i.e. the instructional experience).</p>
<p>I’d rather the school was focused on its educational, cultural, and societal mission than was unduly concerned with graphic design.</p>
<p>Out of curiosity, I just tried to find the cost at the university where my youngest child just graduated. I do not think the school was hiding it out of “shame” as the OP discusses. But I wasn’t sure at first where to look. There is an alphabetical listing. I tried financial aid. That was not the right place. But then I tried Bursar’s Office and under that page, there were links to tuition and fees, and then you had to go to the college at the university that your child is in (the fee structures differ a little). Also, at this university, housing costs differ a bit depending on the dorm and those fees are all listed on the housing site. This is a very expensive university. But while I did not find where to click right off the bat, it did not take me long to figure it out and I could have gotten to it in even less seconds had I utilized the “search” function that the university has on its website. I spent about one minute in my clicks to find what page to look for.</p>
<p>MSUDad, you never answered if you tried the short cut route of using the school’s website’s search function. You keep saying the costs are hidden when they aren’t hidden just cause you had trouble knowing where to look. My kid’s school costs were not hidden just because off the bat, I did not realize to look under Bursar.</p>
<p>Let’s try this: the Fall semester starts at the University of Toledo in, what, 3 weeks? Go on the website and find out how much it will cost to send your kid there.</p>
<p>I side with MSUDad not for the fact of what’s “right or wrong” but these days a website is often a family’s first encounter with a school and “tuition and fees” would be one of the first things I want to click on to investigate - along with specific academics, school size, etc. - whatever are “most important” factors to a family. And, for many, if not a majority, cost IS a most important factor. It’s annoying and questionable when I can’t locate costs!</p>
<p>I just tried this at my other kid’s university. I wasn’t sure where to look when I opened their website. I clicked under “Facts about” and under that, there was a link to tuition and fees. That is not the same route i had to take at my other’s kid’s college’s website. Each school designed it differently. However, at both schools’ sites, there was a search function but I did not resort to it since I was trying to do what MSUDad did which was to find the link to it on the site without using the search function.</p>
<p>I understand the frustration, however. I just would not use it as a criteria for my kid in selecting the best fit colleges.</p>
<p>soozievt - Not only the cost, but ANY other information. As for questions, I believe I have the right to do so, and I find it very suspicious when a school will not answer general questions, such as how many courses with regards to a certain major are only being offered on line, or via teleconference at 9pm. Ultimately, it is my D’s decision, but I want her to make it with facts. I cannot believe one would spend so much money, without in-depth investigation, especially since colleges investigated each and every student through essays, grades, leadership, reference letters, before accepting them. So I am just playing by the same rules.</p>
<p>I just tried University of Toledo at your suggestion. I had to do ONE click to find it and did not use the search function. It took me 20 seconds. I clicked on “prospective students” and right under that was a link to “tuition and fees”. This was not the same route as my two kids’ colleges’ websites but nonetheless it was simple.</p>
<p>eucalyptus, Let me be clear that I completely agree with IN DEPTH INVESTIGATION of a school one is considering. I highly recommend a student look into a school very deeply. I just meant that my kids asked the questions at the schools and I did not.</p>
<p>I did go one click further now and see that the tuition and fees site for that school has every semester up until now and also has this past summer but not this fall. That should not be and the fall tuition should be listed and seems to not be updated (as opposed to hidden). That is surprising, though I imagine those who actually click on their bill for the fall, will have the amount that way but you can’t do that as you are not yet enrolled. However, in terms of cost of attendance, I think you would get a good idea by seeing the costs from this past year for now. Yes, tuition can go up every year at a college.</p>
<p>I’m calling right now to see if a human being can answer the most important question a parent cares about… how much?
… menu … nothing about my question … no option for operator … nice recording about sports tickets … my patience has been thanked … a human being! … back on hold… more recordings … finally an answer: $8,369</p>
<p>I don’t find it odd that the menu on the phone did not include “tuition costs” but it did allow to get an operator who might direct your call and the fact that you were put on hold is not unusual. You got your answer. Their website should have been updated, though I do believe those entering in the fall would have had their costs outlined on the bill. But the cost of the school for now, in terms of selecting schools for the time being, IS on their site from the previous semester. I don’t see tuition fees as hidden at that school as it took two clicks to find them but their error is that this fall’s tuition is not updated on their site. But it was also readily available by phone and again, I don’t consider this as “the school is ashamed of the value and so hides the COA” as the first post indicated. Frankly, why should they be ashamed at University of Toledo? It’s cheap compared to the tuition at my kids’ schools and those were not hidden either.</p>