from the tuition, fees, and other related charges from the col-
lege’s student body.
Generally, figures are calculated that define the number of
students required to enroll and what enrollment will cost the
students. The calculation of the number of students multiplied
by the cost per student is structured to allow the institution
to remain financially stable. For a number of reasons, some
understandable, others not so understandable, many colleges
announce inflated costs for attending the college for that year.
The final, inflated cost published by the institution is called
the “sticker price,” which is somewhat analogous to a new car
sticker price. In other words: sticker price = pretend price.
The largest groups of colleges that discount the sticker price
are private colleges with substantial sticker prices. Less expen-
sive private colleges provide less financial aid/discounted
tuition. Often state colleges and universities have their tuition
levels written into law. This type of restriction fundamentally
disallows the college from using the flexibility accorded to
the director of financial aid to use professional judgment,
which means that in the judgment of the financial aid direc-
tor a financial aid package can be adjusted based upon factors
regarded as important by the director. And that judgment is
not necessarily bound by the parameters of the institutions
recruiting or financial aid regulations, in order to discount
the “sticker price.” Most financial aid directors have remark-
able flexibility in deciding what’s important and how and
why to discount tuition and fees for any particular student.
However, state taxes help keep state college’s tuition lower
than most private schools and therefore constitute invisible
tuition discounts.
According to a College Board survey done during the
Recruiting and Financial Aid 17