Currently Unable to Pay for College

Do you have a less expensive public school option for your degree? It is pretty typical that college student need to work their way through school, and that often means they have to take a little longer (and pay a little more in tuition for those extra semesters), but it also means they aren’t borrowing to support their COL.

You need to look at two things. How can you minimize your cost of living while you are in school (renting a room, living with family) and what jobs can you do on nights and weekends that will cover your expenses and help pay for tuition.

I worked retail on weekends, and then found a substitute janitorial job through my local school district that allowed me to pick up low key night shifts cleaning schools (but decline them when school was crazy). Later I picked up a couple of house cleaning clients and could run over and do my weekly cleaning (on a regular schedule) between classes. For me the mindless/quiet work was critical to still having the energy to interact and learn at school and it let me cover my COL while attending.

I know the cost of tuition has gone up a lot since I attended university, but the average public school tuition and fees in the US is still around 10k a year, which is doable with a combination of loans, work, and having no other life for a few years.

/r/personalfinance Thread