Congrats Grads!

Best wishes to the Class of 2013!

Best Website of All Time

Ok, the jury might be still out on the 'all time' award -- but boy is this website a useful tool. College Reality Check is a transparent way to look into college data and potentially help students and families guide their college search. A few caveats:

1) This data is based on AVERAGES - a net price you see listed should NOT be assumed to be the cost you'll be given. Remember, Financial Aid is based on a lot of factors, not just income. Your true price could be higher or lower than the amount listed on this site, but this site CAN be used to give you a general sense of if a school leans more toward the affordable or expensive side.

2) Use the graduation data as part of the picture, but not all of it. It is great for colleges to be held more accountable for the percent of students that actually attain a degree. However, I think most students would be shocked to see how common it is for students to not finish college. You'll see that the national average for college graduation is a mere 33.3%. Yes, there are some schools with graduation rates well above 90%, but the playing field isn't level - it is easy to have 90% graduation rate when you are an Ivy League school who starts with students that are already predisposed to being academically motivated AND where a strong endowment can make sure that students don't have to drop out for financial reasons. The converse of this means that the graduation rate at community colleges also has to be taken with a grain of salt -- only a small fraction of community college students earn an Associate's degree. Why might that be? Well, for starters, the mission of community colleges is to have much more open enrollment than a more selective 4 year school. That means that there is a trade off where these colleges take a hit on graduation rate in exchange for giving everyone a chance to succeed. Plus, many students use community colleges as a springboard for transferring to a 4 year school. Maybe the student only spends 2 semesters there then moves on to get a bachelor's degree? The community college doesn't get credit for graduating the student (because they didn't award them an Associate's Degree) but they did serve as a conduit for that person to eventually earn a degree somewhere else. When you add the transfer rate to the graduation rate many community colleges DO meet that 33% national average. For ElRo students, also consider that since you are coming from a rigorous high school you have a much higher chance of being part of that graduating cohort. Lastly, many community college students are enrolled without the intention of earning a degree (they may be adult students taking a few classes after retiring from a different career, they may be part time students taking classes for enrichment, etc).

3) Remember to look at all the data - not just one piece. One school might have a higher graduation rate, but if the cost is also higher that graduation rate might not apply to you if you have to end up dropping out because you can't afford it. Another school might be a few thousand dollars more expensive but the starting salary for graduates might be $20,000 more per year - potentially making it worth the investment.

4) One flaw I see on this site is it doesn't seem to take into account in-state vs out-of-state costs at public colleges. I wish they would show a breakdown of how residency impacts net price. Maybe for version 2.0  . . . .