The New College Cost Crisis: Forget FOMO, It’s All About FOMP
By Priyashah, World-Today-News.com
As studentsโ prepare to headโ off to college this fall, a new anxiety is โขgripping families: not the fear of missing out (FOMO), but the โ fear of missing a payment (FOMP).โ The escalating cost of higher education is reaching a fever pitch, transforming the college โexperience into a financialโข tightrope walk for โstudents and parents alike.
The โขnumbers areโค staggering.The โฃUniversity of chicago currently leads theโ pack with a jaw-dropping โ$92,000 annual price tag for tuition and fees alone, narrowly edging out Harvey Mudd College’s $89,500. But theโค sticker shock โฃisn’t limited to elite โคinstitutions.
According โto recent data, the average in-state tuition at โpublicโ four-year universities is $24,920 for the 2024-25 academicโ year,โ while out-of-state students face bills of $44,090. Private colleges aren’t much better, โwith a โtypical annual costโ of $58,600 before factoring in โคroom, โฃboard, books, and the unavoidable “decompression โsnacks.” The “all-in” cost at a private nonprofit now averages โฃa breathtaking $62,990 per year.
Aโค Two-decade Tuition Surge
This isn’t a sudden spike; it’s the culminationโค of decades of relentless increases. Public four-year tuition hasโค soared 179% in the last 20 years, dramatically outpacing overall inflation. Private nonprofit tuition has risen by 128% in theโข same โฃperiod. As โ1977, collegeโฃ tuition and fees have experienced an average annual inflation rate of 6%โ or more – double the rate of other sectors.
To put that into outlook: the cost โขof today’s tuition could โคhave purchased anโ entire house inโ the late 1970s. Now, it barely covers a dorm room.
Beyondโข Tuition: The โHidden โCosts
The financial burdenโข extends far beyond tuition. Dorm life, once a โคrelatively affordable option, is becoming increasingly expensive. Atโ cornell University, a basic double room will โคcost $13,246 for โthe 2025-26 academicโค year, โwhile โa โฃ”super-single” will set โfamilies back $15,994.
Even seemingly small expensesโฃ are climbing.โฃ A simple one-inch binder now costs $1.50โค – a 50% increase in โขjust oneโ year. A wooden pencil? โฃTwenty cents, double theโข price from 2024. โWhile a 24-packโฃ ofโ crayolas remains a rare stableโค price, the overall trend isโข clear: the cost ofโ equipping a student for college is skyrocketing.
As families โคnavigate this new landscape โขof financial โคpressure, carefulโฃ planning and exploration of allโ available โคfinancial aid optionsโค will be more critical thanโค ever.The dreamโ ofโฃ higher โฃeducation remains within reach, but it requires a clear-eyed understanding of the trueโค cost -โข andโข a proactive approach to managing the financial realities of college in โฃ2025 and beyond.
