College · Family Resources · Comparing colleges

Online from home
or a room on campus:
the real difference.

Type what each path charges, the grants each offers and the hours each lets you work. The comparison puts both on one line, year by year.

Compare the pathsWhat you get

The online and residential comparison

The worked example sets an online state university against living on campus. Nothing you type leaves this browser.

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What you get

College · Family ResourcesFree

What you finish with
Each path’s yearly cost after grants and pay, the totals over the degree, the difference and a line-by-line year. It prints as a summary and downloads as a spreadsheet.
Who it is for
Seniors and adult learners deciding how to attend, families sharing the cost, and school counselors laying out the options.
Format
Browser calculator for a phone, tablet or computer, by touch or keyboard. Prints a summary; downloads a spreadsheet (.csv); export and import a file.
Access
Free. No account, no sign-in and nothing to install. Everything you type stays in this browser; nothing is sent to Caveat.
Where it lives
The Family Resources space in Caveat College.
Support
Questions, a correction or a request: team@caveatacademic.com.

How to use it

  1. Find the online price per credit and fees.
  2. Copy the campus cost of attendance.
  3. Add grants from each award or net price calculator.
  4. Set work hours you can keep beside study.
  5. Confirm the online college’s accreditation.

Compare the paths

How the comparison works

What each year costs, less what comes back.

The worked example: an online state university against living on campusOnline year$15,70030 cr × $330 + moreCampus year$24,300tuition, housing, travelLess grants, pay$2,900 · $14,30018 h and 10 h at $15Four years$45,600less onlineThe worked example: an online state university against living on campusOnline year$15,70030 cr × $330 + moreCampus year$24,300tuition, housing, travelLess grants, pay$2,900 · $14,30018 h and 10 h at $15Four years$45,600less online
Cost of each year, less grants and the pay each schedule leaves room for, times the years.

The cost of a year

Online, a year is the credits times the price per credit, plus fees, a computer and internet, and what living at home costs the family. On campus, it is tuition and fees, housing and food, and travel home.

What comes back

Grants and scholarships come off each side. So does pay from work, because an online schedule often leaves room for more hours. Earnings only count if the hours really fit beside study, so set them honestly.

Sources

  1. National Center for Education Statistics. Distance education in postsecondary institutions (nces.ed.gov).
  2. U.S. Department of Education. Database of Accredited Postsecondary Institutions and Programs (ope.ed.gov/dapip).
  3. Federal Student Aid, U.S. Department of Education. Cost of attendance and how aid is figured (studentaid.gov).
  4. Council for Higher Education Accreditation. Directory of accredited institutions (chea.org).

The worked example’s prices, grants and pay are examples. Your entries stay in this browser. Support: team@caveatacademic.com.