Looking for affordable college degrees online?
If you are, you’ll be surprised.
You’ll find that a ton of online college degrees cost the same as the traditional on-campus experience. It’s not clear why, but here are three possibilities:
- Colleges are wary a cheaper online degree will mean fewer students enroll for on-campus classes.
- Since online students get the same quality of education as on-campus students, educators believe their tuition shouldn’t be less.
- Colleges are looking to make larger profit from low-cost but high tuition online courses.
If you’re feeling discouraged because of the high online tuition fees you’re seeing, read on. In this post, we’ll show you how to get the cheapest online bachelor’s degree. We will also show you cost-effective accredited online colleges and reveal tips on how to earn college credits with less student loan debt.
Affordable Online College Degrees: How to Get Quality Education without Spending a Ton of Money
The traditional college experience is costly.
For instance, if you choose to go to a private college, you’ll spend an average of $36,801. If you go to a ranked private college, you’ll end up spending up to $50,000!
But you don’t have to shell out even half these costs to get quality education. Here are five affordable online colleges you can choose from.
University of South Florida, Sarasota
Besides their on-campus courses, the University of South Florida offers various online classes. Its tuition is highly affordable: $4,705. What’s more, 80% of its students receive financial aid.
The college covers more than 40 undergraduate programs including cybersecurity, education, information technology, and criminal justice.
Peirce College, Pennsylvania
Peirce College has been around since 1865. Back then, it was a college dedicated to Civil War Veterans.
Today, it has a plethora of courses you can enjoy for a tuition fee of $6,395. You can choose from a bachelor’s degree, associate’s degree, online courses, and certification classes.
Oklahoma State University, Oklahoma
Oklahoma State University has over 25,000 students in its 6 schools. As an enrollee, you can choose either on-campus classes or distance learning.
The benefit of distance learning is flexibility. You can easily work while studying, which is why more than half of the school’s graduates earn their degree without debt. This is noteworthy, with 70% of college students graduating with heavy loads of student loan debt.
Its tuition fee costs $6,707, and you can apply for the school’s in-house financial aid and scholarships.
Indiana University, Indianapolis
Indiana University is huge, with over 110,000 students across 7 regional colleges and 2 main campuses.
Their online program is also large: you can select from 135 different degrees. Some of these degrees can be earned entirely online, while others require visits to a campus.
Tuition is at $9,371. However, the school has a program called SmartMoney. This program helps you manage debt, get financial aid, and minimize your overall costs.
Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton
Florida Atlantic University has a population of 30,000 each year. It offers 170 different degrees that you can choose to study online.
What courses can you study at Florida Atlantic University? Four popular fields include data science, marketing, geoscience, and nursing.
If you’re interested, you can also take online minors at the university. Some of these include anthropology, hospitality, and political science.
3 Reasons Earning a Degree Online Saves Money
Learning online can be cheaper because schools offering online programs face less cost.
For instance, a study shows that per credit hour, online classes are cheaper by $12 to $66 than regular classes. This is because affordable college degrees online can increase the student-to-teacher ratio and avoid the additional expenses tied with regular class operations.
Of course, this depends on whether the schools pass the savings along to the students instead of making more profit.
But if you study online with a school that does, you can save up to 50% on the average cost per credit hour of college.
Here are 3 other ways you can save money by choosing to study online.
1. You Skip the Hefty Room and Board Payments
For room and board at a private college, you’ll spend as much as $12,680. That’s a huge sum to add to your tuition, books, and other expenses.
If you want to cut down on this expense, why not choose an affordable college degrees online? If you’re still living at home, this alone can help you avoid student loan debt.
Also, studying online while living at home gives you the freedom to attend the college of your choice without having to relocate.
2. You Eliminate the Need for Daycare or Babysitters
Going to college while raising children isn’t uncommon. One in five college students are parents of young kids.
If you’re a college student and parent, you’re a fighter because you continue pursuing your education despite the difficulties. But it isn’t easy.
One problem you face is the expense of supporting yourself in college while raising your child. For example, you need to consider daycare or hiring a sitter to take care of your child while you attend classes.
How much does this cost?
According to Indeed, the average salary of a sitter or nanny is $16.54 per hour. If you take your child to a daycare center, you’ll spend an average yearly price of $11,896 for infants, $10,158 for toddlers, and $9,254 for four-year-olds.
This doesn’t include additional expenses such as supply fees and diaper changes!
Multiply this expense by 4 or 6 years, and you’ll have a large sum sitting on your shoulders.
If it’s too much, why not take care of your child while pursuing your degree? Earning college credits online gives you the flexibility to do so.
3. You Can Save on Commute and Other Expenses
The average college student spends $2,806 on transportation.
And there are other expenses. For instance, college students spend an average of $53.34 on college-branded gear, $653 on sports clubs, $3,497 on academic books, and $4,097 on eating out or takeout meals.
All these expenses can be eliminated when you earn college credits online.
How to Bring College Costs Even Lower with Credit-by-Exam
Right now, you’re equipped with options to save a ton of money by skipping the “typical” college process.
But there’s a way to save even more on college costs.
The answer is credit-by-exam.
What is Credit-by-Exam?
Credit-by-exam is a nationally recognized process that allows you to pass one exam and earn the equivalent college course credits.
One of these exams can give you 3 credits (enough to skip a whole college course). When you take credit-by-exam, you reduce your total coursework load, non-coursework expenses, and time required to earn college credits.
What are the Popular Credit-by-Exams You Can Take?
Three excellent credit-by-exam programs are College Level Examination Program (CLEP), DANTES Subject Standardized Test (DSST), and UExcel.
- CLEP provides exams on 36 subject areas. These subjects are generally taught in junior and sophomore college years and include humanities, American Literature, English Literature, College Composition, and various language subjects. CLEP credits are accepted in over 2,900 colleges.
- DSST credits are accepted in 1,900 colleges across the country. These exams also cover first and second-year subjects like business, advanced biology, and composition.
- UExcel is a credit-by-exam program offered by Excelsior College. It offers exams on science, technology, business, liberal arts, and more.
Credit-by-Exam vs. Taking a College Course
Below are reasons to take credit-by-exam instead of signing up for a college course.
- You’ll save time. A college course takes a whole semester to complete. With credit-by-exam, you can earn the same 3 credits in one sitting.
- You’ll save money. A college course at a private college can cost as much as $900. On the other hand, credit-by-exams cost $85 each for CLEP and DSST and $110 for UExcel.
- You’ll graduate sooner. In a hurry to finish school and start earning a living? Credit-by-exam can remove a whole year from your college life.
How to Reduce Costs While Earning Your Degree
College is not cheap. It’s so expensive that student loan debt is next only to housing debt in America.
But that doesn’t mean you should give up on your goal of getting a degree. All you need is to think out of the box with solutions like online classes and credit-by-exam.
Would you like to start earning college credits with less coursework? Get started today by, click here and tell us about your college goals.
