<p>Polar, in-state tuition at Penn State is about 15K. That doesnt seem to me outrageously higher than other flagships.</p>
<p>A couple of years ago, PA topped the list for instate COA. Since then, other schools have surpassed them in costs. The in state tuition of $15K is very high compared to the SUNYs where the tuiton alone is under $6K. </p>
<p>In state tuition should be covered by PELL and/or Staffords. Here in NY, anyone can go to a local college with Stafford loans. If you lived in State College, PA and wanted to commute to Penn State, the Staffords don’t cover 1/3 of the COA of a commuter to that school.</p>
<p>Relatively speaking,15k for a years tuition is inexpensive…6k is free…</p>
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Please explain further. This is very interesting.</p>
<p>Using PSU as an example,15k for a good education is a good deal…Pitt runs a tad more,and many other private schools in PA are much more…My belief is if you can get a good education for 25-30k, you’ve done well…i also believe you get what you pay for,so get the best education you can afford</p>
<p>^ Where do you get the $25-30k figure? I’m interested because I think the core problem to be solved here relates to how much a university needs to educate a student.</p>
<p>The COA to attend Pitt was 28k, and PSU was 26k last year…i think that is a very good fair cost…we chose to attend a private school at a much more significant cost then either state school…sure you can go to college for a much less costly option,but look at graduation rates,and quality of student body,as i said before,you get what you pay for…and before i get raked over the coals about quality of student body comment,most people choose the places they live based on the same criteria…and those who say they don’t are lying</p>
<p>^ I’m not going to take you on over that one in this thread - I don’t agree, but we’ve probably had that discussion already elsewhere and I don’t see the need to have it here.</p>
<p>However, I don’t think that response adequately addresses concerns over the cost of higher education in PA. What you’re saying is that a PSU education is a bargain given how its quality compares to private peers. And I agree. Your point would be entirely correct if PSU were a private firm pricing at a rate the market would bear. The quasi-public nature of PA’s state-supported schools complicates this issue, but when we examine the broader nature of public university funding it is important to remember that the purpose of these institutions is to provide accessible education, not to price at the highest market-supported price.</p>
<p>Thus, I’m asking why you think it should cost $25-30k per year to educate an undergraduate student. Not why PSU compares favorably with other schools that charge more.</p>
<p>Why does anything cost what it does??? Come on now, kind of a rhetorical question, don’t you think? Why does it cost 1.49 for a 2 liter bottle of coke,when you can get a medicore no name cola for 69 cents?..if you think the cost of ANY college is too high,then don’t go there…i can guarantee you,many others will pay the cost</p>
<p>You might think it is a fair price, but $15K puts it out of reach for those who are economically challenged. Neither Pitt nor Penn State meet need 100% or even close to it. Basically, that tuition price is closing out those who can’t pay that amount unless they are very top students and those who can pay it can cruise right in there with lesser qualifications. </p>
<p>Though I like the PA top state schools a lot more, the SUNY system is much more equitable. With a $6K tuition to any SUNY school, anyone can come up with the money through loans. In PA, after the comm college, the costs to get a 4 year degree are really up there. </p>
<p>I am not concerned about those who don’t want to pay–none of us WANT to pay. Some just can’t and it would be foolish for them in their situations to pay. I say, shame on PA and any states that do not have costs coverable by those available financial aid options for their college.</p>
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<p>But PA does have affordable options. The 14 TRUE state schools have tuition+fees in the 7-8K range. </p>
<p>The number I have seen is that PA funds Pitt at about 10% of the total Pitt budget.</p>
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Every taxpaying citizen has an interest in seeing their tax dollars well spent. The fact is that Pennsylvania taxpayers are expected to pay a lot of money to send their children to in-state institutions supported by tax revenue.</p>
<p>Again, we’re talking about state-supported universities. Yes, the market will bear a high price, but that doesn’t mean a high price is in line with the mission of the public university.</p>
<p>But beyond PA, the cost of college in many states has become an object of concern. It would be extremely helpful to have a ballpark figure for what it should cost to educate a student.</p>
<p>As mentioned in post #31, there ARE options at very low costs,but they are just not PSU or Pitt…if a student can’t afford either of the two, there are many altwrnatives at price points deemed acceptable by earlier posters…</p>
<p>I agree about wanting my tax dollars well spent,but to have them increase to make PSU or Pitt more afforadble is not where i want them going,not when other state school provide a low cost education…as a matter of fact,i’d rather see tuitions increase,and the savings realized plowed back into high schools,where educations vary markedly from town to town,and more prominently from socio-economic levels…</p>
<p>Kinda stinks when a kid lives in Pittsburgh in the Oakland area, does his two years at a CC, and can’t afford to commute to Pitt because the tuition is too high. Same with lower income kids in Philly. Not sure where the cheaper state alternatives are with the accessibility.</p>
<p>Where can a kid get his bachelor’s after finishing local cc in Pittsburgh? I don’t know the city well, and am unaware of a cheaper option for such a student.</p>
<p>Don’t know what’s in Philly either. </p>
<p>Now in NYC, there are a number of 4 year college choices, all state schools and cheap and accessible by public transportation.</p>
<p>Neither PA nor NY have perfect state systems. They are started after many private schools were founded. </p>
<p>The PA system has 2 four year schools close to Phila. Cheyney and West Chester. Cheyney has a campus in Phila. California is 35 miles from Pitts. Just becuase you and I dont know what options there are, does mean the options are not there. No, I doubt it is the selection that NYC kids have.</p>
<p>A degree from a Penn State branch campus just says “Penn State”, so any difference in reputation wouldn’t matter to the graduates. There are some programs that can’t be finished at a branch, though, and one would have to transfer into the main campus. I’m not sure about the degree naming practices for the Pitt branches at Bradford and Johnstown, nor about Temple. However, with some caveats, starting out at the local branch campus looks like a good cost-saving option.</p>
<p>However, the lower-cost state-owned schools do not offer the same options. For example, none of them offer engineering.</p>
<p>Since the governor proposes cutting both public and private college support by 50%, along with major cuts in state funding for K-12 education, there is little point in discussing tradeoffs the state could make. That’s not his plan at all.</p>
<p>Before the “state-related” system was set up in the 1970’s, Penn State had been public while Pitt and Temple had been private. Now they act like hybrids of public and private, which is one reason our in-state costs are so high for the flagships. When I checked a couple years ago PA was the very highest, with Vermont a close second, but maybe it changed since then. Regardless, the PA system can’t be compared to CA, NY, or any other state.</p>
<p>I am talking about the many kids who live in the inner city and do not have a car to travel to a suburb or outlying area for college, or to live at the college. When we tell kids to go to community college, that takes care of two years of higher education. For cities the size of Philly and Pittsburgh, not to have some affordable and accessible options is terrible and a disgrace. It’s Pitt or go get a car. Real helpful for those who live in the city. $15K is a problem for low income folks to pay in tuition alone. That’s a lot of money for your local state college to which you are commuting.</p>
<p>No system is perfect but there there should be an affordable college in major cities, given the high density population and the fact that many who live there do not have cars. In the suburbs, it becomes mandatory to have a car. Living in a major city, there are many families who can’t own one for cost and storage reasons. They live in the city because they do not have to get a car, insurance, maintain it, find a place to park it. risk problems with it.</p>
<p>cptofthehouse - one option is to live off-campus at IUP, which can be done cheaply and without a car. The biggest issue I’ve heard about with “city kids” from Pittsburgh is getting into the right environment for studying, even after taking advantage of the Pittsburgh Promise, and places like IUP, Cal-U, and Slippery Rock are probably better anyway. Also, I would not characterize Pittsburgh as high density, and public transportation has been cut back sharply in the last few years.</p>
<p>That still involves living expenses which is not cheap. Setting up house keeping else where is a pricey proposition. Pittsburgh is a city, much more high density than most suburbs and though, yes, public transportation has been cut, getting to Pitt is doable for most city residents. Also with family and community around that you know, you can maybe get some ride options but not to schools 20 miles away. $15K is too much for a school that does not meet need, and that it is literally the cheapest game in town is an outrage. This sort of thing is the first thing I would change in the current college structures.</p>
<p>Also, unless Promise has been changed drastically, it is a program for high achieving high school students. I am talking about kids who go to community college because they didn’t get any merit aid. Kids and young adults who are painfully making their way through college. The ones who do get through community college successfully and want to get that 4 year degree should get some boost. I’d like those kids to get the money over the precocious high schoolers that are often smart enough and qualified enough to get merit money somewhere and/or get preferential packages in financial aid. They are likely to get into Pitt and get a decent aid package even if they miss the cut narrowly for Promise. No, I am talking about a kid who is succeeding with the travails of the community college and has managed to get to junior standing. Sticking him into an apartment at IUP or California, or Slippery Rock is not an option with an unsupportive family. There should be a state option for these students.</p>
<p>The Pittsburgh Promise currently requires 2.5 GPA and 90% attendance in high school. It has NEVER been for high achievers. You seem to be demanding a “rifle shot” affordable option for a certain group of students, and that’s not reasonable.</p>