How Rising U.K. Tuition Is Affecting U.S. College Admission

Dear College Made Simple reader,

Remember the news last year of college students in the United Kingdom protesting nationwide plans to increase tuition?

Needless to say, the protests didn’t stop planned tuition hikes. Some universities increased undergraduate tuition as high as 173% – to the equivalent of $14,000 a year.

The protests continue, but in a different form. U.K. college students understand they’re going to have to pay a lot for a college education. But instead of going to U.K. schools, an increasing number are enrolling in U.S. universities.

Here’s what that could mean for college-bound students here in the U.S…

- Scott

How Rising U.K. Tuition Is Affecting U.S. College Admission

First off – On a national average, U.S. colleges are really not cheaper than in the U.K. But with tuition hikes in the U.K., prices are more comparable. What’s more – U.S. colleges offer a more diverse array of studies.

So if U.K. students are going to spend tens of thousands of dollars (or more likely, take out tens of thousands in financial aid), why not apply to colleges in another English-speaking country with even more universities than their homeland?

This is already having a direct effect on U.S. college students and applicants. U.K. applicants are by and large considered by U.S. colleges to be more affluent than U.S. applicants. Because of that, colleges are more open to accepting them, which in turn makes enrollment all the more difficult for less-affluent U.S. citizens.

Two very important takeaways to glean from this trend:

First, increased enrollments and tighter enrollments put more pressure on high school graduates to make their applications count by choosing schools where they’ll be “stars.” Be it academic, athletic, or artistic, U.S. college students and applicants have to identify their core strengths and match them with schools that value them.

Without specialty, U.S. students risk getting boxed out of enrollment, financial aid and scholarships.

The second takeaway is that families need to have a plan to pay for out-of-pocket costs without putting themselves and their children in the red. This sounds difficult to do, but it’s not.

Here are three ways to reduce and absorb out-of-pocket college expenses, and how College Made Simple can help you.

1. Position your student to wow college admissions officials with their SAT scores. SAT scores are a tangible measure of a student’s intelligence. They are also a primary qualifier for admission and scholarships. SAT scores can also be easily improved. We recently published a free report called “5 Proven Ways to Increase the SAT Score.” The section about mastering the essay is a must read.

2. Apply to schools that have a history of consistently giving strong financial aid packages. Some schools are able to meet 100% of your student’s financial need while others will only meet 20% or 30%. This information is vital, yet few people know it. By knowing each school’s financial aid capacity in advance, you could save thousands in a single academic year. This College Made Simple report “How to Pick the College That’ll Give you the Best Financial Aid Package” explains this topic in depth.

3. Take advantage of our FREE College Funding Analysis. It’s a great way to get a clear picture of your family’s financial aid and college admissions situation – in one free phone call with one of our trained education consultants. Click here to learn more.

To your college funding & admissions success,
Scott Weingold
Co-Founder, College Planning Network LLC
Publisher, CollegeMadeSimple.com – The free educational resource of College Planning Network