Affordable College Education On A Shoestring Budget

Most of us don’t have the money to spend on higher education these days and some of us don’t want to take out loans in order to further our educations. What we ultimately need is the best education we can get for the lowest cost.

Sometimes this means getting an education at a local community college. If you pick a community college within driving distance of a major university, chances are that you’re actually going to get taught by some bright, young and enthusiastic graduate students working as adjuncts. These can be some of the most memorable classes as the professors are not yet jaded and boring.

Another option for affordable education is to take classes online. If you pick the right school, and you are a self-initiator, you can get a quality education without having to pay of all the overhead of a traditional school. When I was doing research for this article I came across this website which ranks online schools by lowest tuition. For example, if you want to get your MBA online, the most affordable program is Wayne State College at $7,433. That’s not cheap, but it’s the sort of investment that will probably pay off.

So there are two ways to get a relatively affordable college education on a shoestring budget. Do you have any other ideas?

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Gifting Adventures for Bleak Times

Autumn is well upon us, and people who have been struggling to stay afloat in this lousy economy all year are now faced with the prospect of the coming holiday gifting season. Which can be daunting in the best of times, but can be positively depressing for those not used to not having cash or credit for the consumerist frenzy. This post is about helping to trim the gift list if you haven’t done so already, plus how and where to find gifts for loved ones that they may cherish forever, help maintain and spread the joy of the season, and not cost an arm or leg.

Previous Posts:
Christmas in a Depressed Economy
‘Tis the Season: Gift Ideas

1. Analyze your gift-giving habits, trim the tree.

In our free-wheeling consumerist culture the Christmas shopping season represents half or more of retailers’ annual intake and an average middle class family’s greatest expenditures on unnecessary items for the year. If your family is struggling, the credit cards with their usurious interest rates have already been cut into small pieces and thrown away, consumer loans have been paid down or frozen in place, and promises to self not to spend more than you’ve got have been made. Don’t change a thing just because the holidays are coming!

If you have a lot of friends and extended family for whom you’ve bought gifts in years past, networking with them early is a good idea. See if doing something other than gifting this year could be a thankful relief to them as well as you. Pot-luck holiday get-togethers are fun, and no one person has to provide all the food and drinks. “Re-Gifting” parties can be great fun too, where you give some trinket you got from someone else in the past (it’s been just taking up room in the closet or on the shelf ever since) to someone else. Chances are someone will remember who gave Fred that hideous tie he’s never worn and laughs will ensue. The holidays are for fun, so have some!

If you’ve got children, find out what they want most instead of just gathering their wish lists of every toy they’ve seen advertised on TV. For children old enough to know Santa isn’t Bill Gates, one big gift can be better than ten little ones. Items like bicycles, roller blades and other sports equipment can be purchased second hand and refurbished, maybe personalized with glitter paint and trim. Go for things they’ll really use and enjoy, stay away from basic junk.

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