By Bill Quain
This is the third column in a multi-week series based on my upcoming book, “Bankrupt U – Students, Parents and Alumni Are Going Broke, & Colleges Don’t Give a C.R.A.P.” In “Bankrupt U,” my co-author Joe Corabi and I give our readers an insiders’ view of how colleges work. We show students how to get the most from their college experience while paying the least amount of money. And we give them information on making money – information that the colleges didn’t bother to teach them. In today’s column, I will give you a glimpse into one of our ten “Money Traps:” The College Parent Trap.
Colleges know that millions of parents will be sending their kids off to college each year. But as soon as the first semester begins, the college slams the door and pulls the shutters closed. What is the purpose of all this security? It’s to keep parents from discovering anything about their child’s college career. That’s right, the day you drop your kid off at college, you are on the outside – even if you are the one footing the bill.
The Biggest Traps Have the Best Cheese
How do colleges convince parents and students to spend $100,000 and at least four years of their lives to attend a college or university? Simple. They lay a guilt trip on the parents and a promise of freedom on the kids. That’s the “cheese!”
It’s easy to convince the kids. Just get the students on campus, or have them watch a promotional video, and the college will spin a tale of freedom and personal choice. But the way the colleges get the parents is even more clever. Most parents want their kids to have a better life than they did. The colleges convince the parents that college is the answer, no matter how much it costs, and no matter how much money the parents or their child have to borrow.
And they sell you – the parents – on the idea that they will take great care of your kid because they are experts. They spend years figuring out exactly what curriculum your kid needs, and then package it into a great deal. They’re going to convince you to drop your kid off and never ask questions. All the parents need to do is to be supportive, and the college will take care of it all from that point. After all, every professor and administrator could have been making more money somewhere else, right? That must make them good people, thinking only about the students they teach.
But of course, the truth is that college professors and administrators work for just one reason – they want to get paid.
Big News: Colleges Are Big Business
Although most colleges are so-called “nonprofit” enterprises, that doesn’t mean that they aren’t in the business of collecting money. There is no institution or business on earth that is more serious about taking money from individuals than people who work at colleges! But they keep silent about the big business side of college, and brand themselves as public servants.
You see, American colleges have a two-part strategy called “attracting and extracting.” They want to attract as many students as possible, and then extract as much money as they can from every student they accept. In order to maximize this, they need to first energize the students’ parents, and then isolate them from their kids.
Get Out of the Parent Trap
Don’t make the assumption that the college prioritizes your child’s best interests. Stay involved. Make sure your child gives the college “permission” to discuss things with you. (Can you even believe that’s a thing – that your child has to give the college permission to talk with you, even if you are paying the college bills?)
I strongly suggest that you remain involved in your kid’s course choices each semester. Get to know the guidelines for fulfilling transcript requirements, maintaining scholarships and financial aid, graduating, etc. It takes a bit of work, but it’s worth it.
If you are paying for your child’s college, go through the curriculum and look for courses that you require the student to take. For example, I think every college student today should take an Accounting class. But there are many classes – Computer Programming, Artificial Intelligence, Oral and Written Communications, and Financial Literacy – that would be valuable to your son or daughter.
Parents, if you are paying for all or part of your kid’s college expenses, you need to set up your expectations early and stick to them. Don’t let that 18-year-old kid get lost. Colleges make a lot of extra money when students make mistakes – mistakes like taking a double-major, adding a minor, dropping out of classes after the deadline, etc. Your kid may technically be an adult, but they still need your guidance.
The Professors Who Pay You Back
My co-author Joe Corabi and I have both been college professors for many years. We founded “The Professors Who Pay You Back” as a way of “giving back” to all the students, parents and alumni who have paid our salaries all these years. You can learn more about us and “Bankrupt U,” on our website: www.TheProfessorsWhoPayYouBack.com.
As always, I love to hear from my readers. Drop me an email to bill@quain.com. And as I say each week, I’ll see ya in the papers!
Bill is a Professor in Stockton University’s Hospitality Management Program. He is the author of 27 books, and a highly-respected speaker. Even though he is almost totally blind, Bill is a long-distance runner and runs the Ocean City Half Marathon each year. He lives in Ocean City with his wife Jeanne, and his Guide Dog Trudy. Visit www.billquain.com or email him at bill@quain.com.
