Compare college tuition costs

Bernie Sanders’ idea for our country to somehow provide free tuition to all college-age Americans always struck me as a financially irresponsible campaign gimmick.

Headline news continues to target student loan debt as a growing concern. Tuition at both public and private schools continues to rise at a fast clip. Some estimate that Americans collectively owe more than $1.3 trillion in student loan debt.

This problem isn’t going to just fade away. Without reversal, what will student debt be in 20 years when today’s toddlers crawl across the stage to grasp their diploma?

College is expensive, and its cost is only increasing. We all know that. But, do we really know what we’re talking about beyond generalities such as these?

Recently, I stumbled into something worth your consideration. The Chronicle of Higher Education operates a website for academia which, given a chance, might find its way onto your favorites list. As you might expect, the spectrum of topics the Chronicle addresses is vast.

The Chronicle used data from the College Board’s Trends in College Pricing to present something like a shopping list.  If you go online, you can use the interactive chart to sort all this data to your specific interest. In other words, you can rank colleges by tuition (in-state or out-of-state) or room and board for any state in our union.

By playing around while sorting the data, you quickly discover not all states are created equal. The most expensive school in California runs $69,717 per year! The least expensive? Look at Wyoming where the most expensive school in that state costs $26,535 per year — even less for local students (how was Bernie going to handle such discrepancies across this marketplace?).

I chose “Missouri” and then sorted to deliver a list of public 4-year institutions. From those results, I easily compiled a ranking from most to least expensive. The chart even allowed for costs to be adjusted for inflation. It’s a cost comparison I didn’t know existed.

I wanted to present a list in this column, ranking all of Missouri’s 4-year colleges by totaling the in-state tuition with room and board expense. The data, however, may not be copied, published or rewritten or redistributed without permission. I didn’t ask; I’m just happy they’re telling.

Anyone can perform your own study by going online to http://www.chronicle.com/interactives/tuition-and-fees. It is well worth your time. Or stop by the office and I’ll gladly share a copy of my comparisons privately with you.

I’m not a financial giant. I’m the guy who hires smart gals who make it their business to keep me far away from the cash register at the front desk and out of the entries into Quickbooks. And you probably don’t realize how very much I appreciate their diligence. So, obviously, I can’t personally vouch for or against the accuracy of this information. But you don’t have to be a math major to find these numbers interesting.

Like our hospitals, our colleges really, really, really, really don’t like such simple comparisons. Costs cause outrage. It’s to their advantage to fragment our focus. As a society, we suffer ADHD (attention deficit disorder) even on things expensive and significant. My bet is most Missourians know more about where Mizzou’s football team ranks than where MU’s tuition ranks nationally or even within the state (MU, by the way, is not atop Missouri’s all 4-year institution list).

Perhaps many high school counselors provide cost comparisons to assist parents confronting tuition decisions. Hopefully so. High school seniors on the cusp of stepping into student debt today should be much more aware and focused than I was at their age.

Costs, however, are just part of the equation. How do you put a dollar amount on the personal contacts and relationships which so frequently define success? Aspiring high school seniors should consider where to locate their college career, if costs allow, since it so frequently impacts residence and lifestyle that follows.

Ranking colleges by cost isn’t the only comparison to consider. The homework should also compare each college’s success rate in placing its graduates into the job market — not just the percentage of success but also the time frame. This comparison defies simplicity (how many college freshmen can even declare their field of major study?).

Yes, there are many other considerations besides cost that impact choices. No doubt college administrators would add arguments and confusion to simple comparisons, some perhaps even boasting, “You get what you pay for!” Apart from the ranking presented, much of what’s written here simply states the obvious.

I’m just saying most folks would like to start the decision process with a simple cost comparison. If college regents and administrations don’t understand that, then the disconnect spawning the term “Ivory Towers” continues.

Stupid me. I also think hospitals should be required to systematically report the cost of each surgery for easy comparison for all citizens to see …and not force us individually to run to the internet to cobble together whatever information we can find.

How ’bout you?

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Just so you’ll know, the most expensive higher education institutions in Missouri according to The Chronicle is the private 4-year Washington University in St. Louis followed by private 4-year Rockhurst University in Kansas City ($45,050); the 4-year for profit Research College of Nursing ($44,855); and the private 4-year William Jewell College in Liberty ($42,210).

This ranking is simply adding tuition plus room and board (does not include mandatory fees, etc.).

MU-Kansas City  $19,820 ($10,247) = $30,067 per year

MU-Columbia $19,614 ($10,100) = $29,714 per year

MU-Science & Tech $19,564 ($9,935) = $29,499 per year

MU-St. Louis $19,285 ($9,220) = $28,505 per year

Northwest MO State $18,791 ($9,612) = $28,403 per year

Truman State $16,014 ($8,558) = $24,572 per year

SE MO State $15,498 ($8,508) = $24,006 per year

Univ. of Central MO $15,640 ($8,318) = $23,958 per year

MO Western $15,217 ($8,565) = $23,782 per year

Harris-Stowe State $14,470 ($9,250) = $23,720 per year

Missouri State $14,902 ($7,826) = $22,728 per year

Lincoln University $13,602 ($6,560) = $20,162 per year

MO Southern $12,504 ($6,627) = $19,131 per year

NOTE: Data above taken from 1998-99 through 2016-17 school years. You can also review each schools full sticker price (published tuition, required fees, room & board). Other types of institutions for comparison purposes include private 4-year, for-profit 4-year, all 2-year colleges, and public 2-year colleges. The data is presented on: http://www.chronicle.com/interactives/tuition-and-fees