When our son, Michael, was applying to universities last year he announced that he wanted to travel to Switzerland to attend the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts. My first thought was simply how much this was going to cost. When I researched the school, I noticed that it offered bachelor’s and master’s programs in yodelling.
As it turns out, my son stayed in Canada for his postsecondary education – which dramatically reduced the cost. If you’re a parent or grandparent who is thinking about the postsecondary education of a child in your life, you should think about two things: 1) what the cost will be, and 2) how you can help to pay for it. Let me share some thoughts today.
If you have a child starting postsecondary school today, a reasonable estimate for these costs might look like this for a student living away from home for eight months and enrolled in a typical bachelor’s program : tuition and ancillary fees $7,000; books and supplies $700; accommodation $7,200 ; food $2,800; entertainment $1,200; transportation $1,200 ; and personal care $1,200. In this case, the total for four years could be $90,000.
Now, if we assume tuition inflation of 5 per cent annually, and inflation of 3 per cent for other costs, the four-year total for a student starting postsecondary school five years from now could be $107,900. If starting in 10 years, it could be $129,500; in 15 years, $155,900; and 18 years from now, $174,500.
The costs can be reduced, of course, if your student lives at home while going to school. If we remove accommodation and food costs from the figures above, a four-year program for a student starting this year would cost about $48,000; starting in 10 years, $73,300; in 15 years, $90,750; and starting 18 years from now, $103,200, assuming the same inflation rates.These are no small dollars. So, how can all of this be paid for? There are five ways.