Over the past 10 years, tuition at public four-year universities has increased by an average of 17%, according to Best Colleges. Reasons cited were increasing expenses for housing, athletic programs, student healthcare, food service, maintenance and marketing. 

Costs also affect students’ decisions on where to attend. 

“The tuition for some universities is very high and will be a factor in where I choose to go,”  junior Makayla Driver said.

There are ways to try to save money when attending college. Counselor Kevin McAdam had some suggestions.

“The No. 1 thing I would encourage students to do, whether they want to or not, is the A+ program —  a great way to save,’ McAdam said. “When you start equating two years of college, you’re probably saving yourself by doing the A+ program at Maple Woods, roughly $40,000. So that can be a really, really good way for students to save money.” 

Students can apply for as many scholarships as possible and be flexible and open to options. In-state college can also be less expensive than going out of state. 

“I’ll probably go in state because it’s cheaper,” junior Abbigail Jester said.

 Attending community college can help students save money. To see a list of participating college and vocational technical schools, click here. According to the National Society of High School Scholars, community colleges are much less expensive than universities. Specifically, the group reported community college tuition can be as little a $3,500 per year, compared to up to $35,000 for out-of-state students attending a public university.

The A+ program is a potential way to save money. It’s a state of Missouri program that gives students two free years of community college. The requirements for the A+ program are having 2.5 cumulative GPA, 95% attendance throughout all four years of high school, 50 hours of tutoring and scoring proficient or advanced on the Algebra one end of course exam.

Outside of A+, there are also different ways to find scholarships. 

“Usually starting in things you’re involved in is a great way to do that like sports, clubs, or whatever else,” McAdam said. “We do have on the Staley counseling website a scholarship hub essentially with different scholarships from around the area that we post on there.”