The StarTelegram
reported in this past Sunday edition (May 29) the findings of a group of business journalism students at the University of North Texas who were looking at college costs. The article was by Mark Hoffer [email protected]. {{more:[read more]}}The caution issued from the study was that there is a hidden cost or least one that is not well-known by prospective and current students in Texas state colleges.out of state tuition applies above the limit …
If a student exceeds the limit set by the State of Texas for finishing a college degree (150 credit hours), the student will pay out of state tuition for every college credit hour from that point until the degree is completed.
The 150 college hour limit does allow for five years of college but the average college student in Texas now takes 5.3 years to graduate according to the 2013 Complete College America report.
This means a prospective student can take additional class work and may make a mistake once or twice but changing majors and schools can be costly. Out of state tuition varies from campus to campus in Texas but the additional cost associated with taking more 150 hours can add thousands to a college degree.
junior college hours count also …
If a student decides to take the junior college route to save money over full degree college but ends up taking a number of classes beyond the basics, all those those additional hours count toward the 150 maximum when the hours are transferred. Too many junior college hours could end up wiping out any savings by attending the junior college.
For those on federal aid the limit is 180 college credit hours. Above that limit, federal aid is no longer available.
the good news …The good news for high school students who have earned advanced placement credit. Those credit hours do not count against the 150 credit hour limit.
avoid the stress …
Now that there are so many options for areas of study and different fields within fields that students can pursue, the pressure to decide a major can be serious. Many schools require enrolling students to declare a major before the student has even start a college class.It is not something to decide in haste and without some serious homework. A student needs to put some time and research in making this decision. Don’t always count on the advising system to know all the answers, do your own research.Read more at StarTelegram
Other related articles:
- USNews.com 5 steps before changing your major
- NBC News.com College
Freshmen face major dilemma
About the study: Students studying business journalism at the University ofNorth Texas did a project during the spring semester on student debt. The
project was led by Karen Blumenthal, a former personal finance writer and
bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal. The students were
Comments
