Back to School: Free & Low-Cost Higher Education

Shoestring's native Boston is sometimes called the City of a Thousand Colleges, and there's a myth that one out of every five people in this town is a student of some kind. At least, it sounds like a myth until you're out to dinner with five people in Boston and you realize that at least one of them is a student of some kind.

Regardless of where you live, hitting the books can help you present your boss with a more credible argument in favor of a raise. If your company is facing cutbacks, extra education can help boost your staying power. And if you're one of the many unemployed Americans currently searching for your next gig, going back to school can provide you new skills and direction, not to mention contacts in your field.

The good news is that secondary education doesn't have to be ruinously expensive. In fact, if you use your head, it can be downright cheap. For example, the President's recent stimulus package allows those collecting unemployment benefits to apply for federal Pell Grants. These awards of approximately $5,300 can be put towards tuition and fees at four-year public or private colleges, community colleges — even some trade and vocational schools.

But, it's not the only piece of the cheaper education puzzle available to shrewd Shoestringers. If you’re looking for ways to give your resume a booster shot, here are some resources to consider:

ADULT EDUCATION
At the Boston Center for Adult Education (BCAE), external affairs manager Jennifer Scott describes her constituency as "a real mixed bag" of older and younger learners, those in the workforce seeking to expand skills, and those looking to get back in.

For example, she points to the BCAE's bustling computer lab. "We offered a class in Photoshop and it was so popular, we added Photoshop 2 because people wanted more." One student, Scott says, "lost her job as a writer and needed to learn some new skills in the current economy. We have a company that sent all their employees [to take classes at the BCAE] after they made a switch from Quark to InDesign and then needed to get everyone up to speed."

As a community-based non-profit, affordability is central to BCAE’s mission. "It's another option for people," Scott says. "It's a real chance to choose a variety of skills."

AUDIT (THE GOOD KIND)
Before enrolling, Bob Stokes, assistant vice president for part-time and continuing studies at Villanova University, suggests doing a "skill audit on their own background." Find out which level of education — degree, certificate, test — your profession may require. Some of his students are, "retooling. Their job may have been cut or they’re making a transition or looking for enhancement to add capabilities to their background."

If you aren't sure what your next job may be, consider auditing a class. Auditing won't earn you course credit, and is often up to the discretion of the professor, but can be an easy way to get accustomed to the language and terminology of a profession — some universities even make it easier for you. Tufts, for instance, extends the option to audit classes for a nominal registration fee to residents of its home communities of Medford and Somerville in Massachusetts. Eligible students are allowed to take one tuition-free course every semester, provided that they aren’t already registered for, or intend to register for, a Tufts certificate or degree program.

UNIVERSITY OF THE INTERNET
Don't live in a college town? Just for you, my friend, they invented the Internet. University of Phoenix offers a number of programs online, from associate's degrees in accounting a doctorate in Philosophy of Industrial/Organizational Psychology.

According to the university's website, "Our online campus is an outcome of the University's recognition of the technological transformation of the workplace and the needs of the working adult student. Rather than gathering in a traditional classroom, students and instructors interact electronically and asynchronously, resulting in increased access for students by allowing them to control the time and place of their participation."

UP offers a 'cash plan' where students can pay their tuition course by course rather than by semester, and can set up direct billing with employers if they have employee benefits that include covering the cost of professional development classes.

GET YOUR CERTIFICATE
Many people don't have the luxury of spending two or four years to go back to school. You're simply looking for the validation that a certificate can give to existing skills on a resume. In Philadelphia, Villanova University claims non-credit professional development in several areas, including contract management, IS security, and software testing, to name a few. According to their website, certificate enrichment can even increase your current salary by as much as 16%. Going back to school, "increases confidence levels because you know the terminology and know the issues of the field," Stokes says.

These professional development programs are largely conducted online and generally take no more than 45 credit hours to complete, over 8 to 16 weeks, depending upon the program. Instructors are the same caliber as the on-campus faculty and your transcript will not denote the certificate was earned online.

Being present isn't necessary anymore in order to get the full benefit of a program; Stokes says he sees the same camaraderie in the virtual courses that he does in the live classroom. "They work on virtual group projects, go from class to class together, and start developing friendships and contacts in the field."

LOCAL & COMMUNITY COLLEGES
Nestled in Rochester, New York, Monroe Community College (MCC) services an enrollment of more than 18,000 on eight sites and campuses. A third of its student population is under the age of 20. State residents pay only $1,450 per semester, and MCC offers 'hybrid classes' that combine a weekly on-campus lecture augmented with at-home online course work in programs as diverse as marketing and golf course design.

Too many responsibilities at home? MCC offers a childcare program with affordable rates — even some subsidy funding for Pell grant-eligible applicants.

FINANCIAL AID
The Department of Education and Department of Labor have collaborated on a website, Opportunity.gov, where citizens can find more information on the Pell Grants, as well as guides to identifying the right school for them and then initiating the application process.

Sure, it's been ingrained into our brains that pursuing higher education equals a very broken bank account, but the times have changed — or we've just become savvier. Choose the higher education option that's right for you and your future plans, and hit the books. There are options out there for every budget. Even no budget at all!