College: What Is It Really Costing Us?

By: Anne Falcetano
Posted In: News

In applying to college, Scott Fitzgerald chose to apply to only three schools as opposed to Jenna Ford, who applied to eight. The difference between these students was that Fitzgerald paid his own application fees while Ford’s application fees were paid by her parents. Fitzgerald will pay for his own books this semester, and Ford’s parents will pay for hers.

College tuition is on the rise–as is the cost of simply applying to schools. The cost of SAT preparation material is going up, and now the SATs are going to cost more.

According a report in ‘USA Today,’ the SAT Reasoning Test is rising in cost from $29.50 to $41.50; the reason for this is the added essay section, which will go into effect in March. To some families, this jump in cost is not a factor when applying to college. But for Fitzgerald and his parents, this is yet another reason to become aggravated with the entire college application process.

The new essay section is not “new.” It is the essay from the SAT II test cut and pasted onto the SAT I test, and the new section means that the testing company will need to hire more people to score the exam; this is where the increased costs comes in.

When it comes to applying to college, the SAT is one of the most important factors in determining a student’s chances of getting into the college of their choice. Tim McDonough, associate director of admissions at Salve Regina University, believes that when he receives his first batch of scores from applicants, that batch will include the added essay section. The test will not weigh more because of it. The Salve Regina admissions office will still factor in the essay that is on their application. Nonetheless, students must still prepare for the test in order to get into their desired school.

High school students have numerous options when it comes to preparing for the exam, which can range in cost from $14 to $899. The lesser of the two includes simply purchasing a book of practice tests for the SATs and teaching themselves the exam. The higher option is to take 10 tutoring sessions at a Princeton Review center.

Known as the “most effective way to prepare” for college entrance exams, the Princeton Review system guarantees that if a student attends virtually all of their classes, they will increase your SAT score by a minimum of 200 points. The sessions cost $899, a price that has increased by $50 in the last two years. If students attend every class and increase the minimum points promised, they end up paying the Princeton Review approximately $5 a point.

The Princeton Review does offer a “scholarship” program. Clarissa Steinbach, executive director of the Providence Princeton Review office, explained that in addition to the financial aid, the company offers a payment plan for those who cannot afford to pay the lump sum.

The SAT also offers a program to help those who cannot afford to pay the fee for the exam. They are called “fee waivers,” and individuals can apply for a fee waiver through the SAT web site. The waivers are given out on a need basis only. These can also be carried over to help out with those who cannot pay application fees for their colleges.

At Salve Regina University, a student will never be turned away if they cannot afford the application fee. The school accepts the fee waiver and will accommodate applicants who are having difficultly paying for the application cost.

What is this doing to affect the number of students who are applying to college? It caused Fitzgerlad, a sophmore at Salve, to apply to fewer than half the number of schools that Ford applied to. Ford, a sophomore at Salve Regina, said that if she had to go back and pay the application fees herself, she would only have applied to the schools she knew she was guaranteed to get into. She also stated that she would not pay more that $200 on application fees. This is about the same amount of money that Fitzgerald paid when he applied to schools and paid himself.

Application fees, according to McDonough, are supposed to help “weed out” the faint-hearted applicants. Salve Regina’s application fee has risen over the years. Now it will cost $40 to apply to Salve. Three to five years ago, it only cost $25. Schools can get away with this because there is always going to be a demand to apply and schools can increase their fees when the

applicants will pay.

Still, Ford applied to eight schools, because she was supposed to. For this generation, college is a must, and Ford and Fitzgerald are among the largest group of college-bound students. This generation must go to college. However, as McDonough said, “More and more people are concerned with getting into a name brand school.” He continued, “They should look for someplace that fits instead of somewhere that looks good on a sweatshirt or on the back of their parents’ car.”