Great approach, Michael. Why not be direct when addressing cost, right? Ultimately, it is what it is and I'm sure your students appreciate your forthright and honest approach when it comes to talking about tuition.
Shannon Gormley
Currently I address cost issues whenever they arise in the process. If I am asked very directly at anytime what the total cost is I answer them the same way. If they simply say I’m not sure I can afford this. I respectfully discuss how we will be meeting with a FA planner to accurately discuss this with you to answer all your FA questions.
Jeffrey, you are right. Tuition is tuition. So it is great that you are prepared with options for students if they need them. Great job.
Shannon Gormley
Asking about cost to the student is straight forward. There is no getting around the cost of school. what I try to do is have options available for cost and steps to get there.
Josh,
Great approach to addressing tuition. Giving student's the information they are looking for without hesitation says alot, believe it or not. Cost is typically a discussion that makes many admissions professionals uncomfortable. By giving the amount to the student and then asking if it's what they expected, you have the opportunity to further explore their expectations and what they're comparing you to by asking "compared to what" when they give you their response.
Exploring all the students options in regards to their future is an ethical approach to assisting students in making their own best decsions. Many prospectives students find that exploration helpful in truly determining "fit".
Shannon Gormley
I address this issue head on. If someone asks for the tuition I give it to them quickly without any hesitation. I have learned from this course some ways to isolate and examine the cost question by asking to students to explore what life would be like should they chose not to continue their education.
Guy, thanks for sharing this. It sounds like you and your students will have a serious conversation so that you can get to the root of the challenge and understand each student's unique concerns. Great job.
Shannon Gormley
The responses are usually positive because they understand that getting a skill is important in order to get a steady job. However, I do have students that think school is debt as opposed to an investment. When these situations occur I like break down what exatcly they consider debt to be and explain how school will benefit them as opposed to burden them.
Guy, that is certainly one way of helping your student understand how valuable their education as an investment can be. Many reps use techniques to help overcome this challenge. How do the students typically respond to this approach?
Shannon Gormley
When discussing tuition challenges I always return to the reason they want to go to school, the issues they expressed to me ib regards to unsatisfaction in their life, career, etc and explain the importance of investing in something that will appreciate in value over time.
Carlos,
Excellent approaches! It sounds like you work very hard to ensure your student has a full picture of what to expect with any of the resources available to them. I'm guessing that this is something the student appreciates. Keep up the good work!
Shannon Gormley
I do a cost analisys with the student. To show how the different venues: Loans, Grants, Scholarships, etc can help to cover the cost and shows the student a better way to manage his/her debt.
I explain to them that education is an investment for the future and change the perspective.
Great observations, Magdali. It can be difficult for students to see how an investment in education may pay-off in the long run for them. Especially with the tough economic times that many individuals are experiencing nowadays. Acknowledging their concern is a great place to start, as it let's your student know that you've heard them. I see that you utilize a number of tools (including metaphorical references) to help students see how the investment will work for them long term.
In these hard economic times, the cost factor is the most compelling reason any student will use to not pursue their education. I always use the metaphor "the only way to get out of the hole you find yourself in is through education". This outweighs the cost challenge because it makes them think about the payoff of the sacrifices they make now for the betterment of their, and their families, future.
Thank you for sharing, Maricelly. This is one way of helping your student understand how valuable their education as an investment can be. Many reps use a similar statment to help overcome this challenge.
Thanks for sharing your approach, Maricelly. Discussing tuition can be a challenge for many admissions professionals. How do your students typically respond to this statement?
I usually address this challenge telling them that look at it as an investment that nobody can take away from them
Thanks for sharing your approaches for addressing this specific challenge. It sounds like as an institution, you do your best to assist your students in this area by providing a number of options. That's great! How do you students typcially respond to the options provided?
We currently allow our students to pay ahead or pay as they go. We also loan the text to them for the duration of the course, if they are unable to purchase the book. Our tuition is very fair and we also pay their CNA state test fee out of it. Our goal is to assist our students with licensure and help them get to work and embarq on their medical career. Our program has no financing options, some students are sponsored and we are seeing more of that as the word of mouth spreads about our program.
