ecause your biggest expense as you pursue you university education is going to be tuition, the college you attend is quite likely the most important factor in determining how much debt you will — or won’t — need to take on. You are likely already aware that public colleges, funded in part by state taxes, have lower tuition costs. Scholarships and generous financial aid packages can lower tuition costs of private institutions to public college levels, but as a general rule, you’ll be looking at higher college costs if you choose to go to a private college. You’ll have to make your college choice very carefully. While cost shouldn’t be the exclusive factor in your decision making, it should definitely be a big one.
Does that mean that you, as someone who’s looking for ways to minimize or eliminate any college debt you need to take on, should not even consider attending a private college? Absolutely not. If a college looks remotely interesting to you, you should put it on your shortlist. The reason for this comes back to scholarships and financial aid packages. Many private college have large endowments and award generous scholarships to strong applicants — enough even to eliminate the private college tuition difference. Therefore, during the application process, don’t eliminate any colleges only because the tuition is too high. Apply to as many colleges as you can.
Once you’ve been accepted, it’s time to make tough decisions. Say the scholarships you receive from the private colleges aren’t enough, and you’re facing a bigger price tag to attend a private college. What do you choose?
How I made my choice
Among several colleges that I had been accepted to was a local private college. It was a backup choice, and the tuition was $40,000 a year. The admissions committee also awarded me a scholarship to cover half of my tuition, which brought it down to a more manageable $20,000.
At the same time, I had also been accepted to the University of Minnesota, where in-state tuition was $15,000. With the $5,000 merit scholarship I received from the university, my cost to attend would be around $10,000.
A small private college for $20,000 a year, or a large public university for $10,000 a year? As you already know, I chose to attend the University of Minnesota. Here’s why.
First, the private college was not my first choice, but rather a backup. As your high school counselor will tell you, you should always apply to backup colleges. The college was not very selective, admitting around 65% of applicants.
The academics were much stronger at the U of M, with excellent undergraduate STEM programs taught by professors who were highly regarded in their field. Furthermore, when applying to the University of Minnesota, you had to choose a college within the university to apply to. I chose the prestigious College of Biological Sciences and not only was I accepted, but I was even admitted to the university’s honors program, a competitive program that admits only high-performing high school students who are, on average, in the top 98% of their graduating class. By choosing the University of Minnesota, I was choosing a more rigorous academic program and would be surrounded by high-achieving students.
Second, of course, was the financial aspect. If you’re following the math, the difference in tuition between the two schools was $10,000 per year. Over the course of the typical four years it takes to finish an undergraduate degree, that difference would have added up to $40,000. I knew I’d need to take out loans to afford the private college. Had the private college been more prestigious, I would have definitely given it more consideration. But with superior academics offered at my in-state university, I ultimately couldn’t justify the costs.
Is a private college education worth the private college tuition? To some, it might be.
Private colleges: Smaller class sizes and personal interaction with your professors
To some, the $40,000 tuition difference could be worth the smaller class sizes and personalized attention that private colleges are known for. At the University of Minnesota, my classes were rarely smaller than 50 people, and often as large as 300. With classes that large, a professor would never get to know you unless you made the effort to go to their office hours. Therefore, if you’re a student who needs regular, personal interaction with your teachers in order to be successful and get good grades, a private college might be better for you, despite the tuition cost.
I’ll also note that while the university employed some of the professors in their respective fields, they rarely taught undergraduate courses. And even if a well-known professor did teach some undergraduate classes, labs and discussion sections were almost always taught by graduate students.
When I speak to friends who shelled out hundreds of thousands of dollars to attend a private college, most speak highly of their experience (though not all agree it was worth the student debt they’re still paying off). They didn’t feel anonymous in auditoriums filled with hundreds of students. They really got to know their professors and built up strong relationships with them. This helped some of my friends get strong letters of recommendation for graduate and business school. To some, these connections and experience were worth the extra tuition and even the debt.
Public university: Research Opportunities and Cheaper Tuition
On the other hand, attending a large university came with benefits beyond the lower cost of tuition and the more rigorous academic programs. The University of Minnesota is a public research university that employs hundreds of professors whose labs research anything from cancer drugs to black holes. Private colleges, especially private liberal arts colleges, often don’t have active research labs. If you’re considering a career in research, you should keep this in mind.
Ultimately, despite the large classes sizes and lack of individualized attention, I don’t regret my decision to attend the University of Minnesota for a minute. I was challenged academically, surrounded by exceptionally smart peers, and participated in a variety of extracurriculars and research that would have never been available at a small private college.
From a purely financial perspective, a public university was an excellent choice for me, as it will be for many others. Just remember that the financial aspect is not the only aspect you should weigh when choosing which college to attend.
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