The Coffee Machine that can Pay for a University Education

My strategy for college savings has been to use the $1,000 child tax credit provided by Uncle Sam. We have 2 kids, and thus get $2,000 each year. After we get our refund, I simply take each kid’s $1k and put it into an UTMA account. I figure by the time they get to college we’ll have roughly $18k for them to use.

From there, I plan on using the strategy my parents did. My sophomore year of high school they told me they had money saved for college, but if I was able to get scholarships to offset my tuition, any leftover money would be mine to keep. It worked well, I made sure to keep my grades up in high school and got a high ACT score that netted me $2,000 scholarship per year.

Here in Sweden we also get some money from the government to have kids right now it is about 150$ per kid wih a little (about 10%) added if you have more kids. This is the same for all and is not income adjusted as it (in theory) is money for the kid which does not have any income. We put this money into a fund for our kids (now 1 and 3 years old).

This will add up to a fair amount when they turn 18…but I am already thinking about how we can best ‘give’ this money to the kids helping them to get a good start in life but at the same time helping them grow their money mustaches. Any ideas??

Last year I got our coffee at home price down to $.17 per 6 ounce cup. That’s with cream and sugar. Hubby uses a boatload of sugar. We buy Archer Farms decaf at Target for about $8.50lb and the donut shop blend from Aldi at $6lb. These are the cheapest options that we’ve found that taste great. We use a french press. When the coffee is gone, I pour another 1/3 pot of hot water onto the grounds and get some “free” decaf.
I think I’ve had a fancy coffee out 3X in my entire life and that was for roadtrip caffeine purposes. I just can’t see what’s so special about overly sweetened hot bean water that makes it worth $5.

And then there is still the possibility that in 20 years, everything changed like it did e.g. in Russia from 1985 to 2005. Think about it.

I believe colleges only do undergraduate while universities offer undergraduate and graduate degrees. I think you just meant that Americans and Canadians use different terms when they want to refer generically to any institution of higher learning, but I still thought I would mention the difference between the words because having a good vocabulary is both frugal and fun!

I buy black tea for 1 dollar per 100 bags. Lasts me a month. Taste better than coffee and is high in fluoride. Annual cost 12 dollars . Your Starbuckers are spending about 3000 per year or 300 time
s our spending on caffiene!

I know this is about college, and I love my coffee, but you inspired me to calculate costs.

Cost per tablet of Stay Awake caffeine pills from Walmart is 4¢. If you only want the caffeine, the pills are much cheaper even than home brew coffee. Plus, you don’t have to dump old coffee at the end of the week. This could be even more savings by eliminating the coffee maker, coffee, and additives (cream, sugar, vanilla, etc.)

Just a thought…I won’t give up my home brew coffee, though.

Last year my son graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Economics with a 3.5 gpa. We paid a total of $22,000 for his tuition and books for all 4 (almost 5) years combined. We also live in the Bay Area where most things are more expensive than elsewhere in the country. Many of our friends find it hard to believe that his Bachelor’s degree cost so little.

My husband and I made a deal with our children concerning university/college. We would pay for it all up to a Bachelor’s degree level if they lived at home, attended a community college for the first two years, then transferred to the local state university for their upper division. Additionally, they had to get a consistent part-time job to pay their own commute costs, other related school expenses, and fun items/outings. We also bought all textbooks used or digital to reduce costs and were sure to resell them back when classes ended. If they did not earn a passing grade in any class, then they would be responsible for all fees/tuition associated with retaking the class.

If they chose to go to another university out of the area, then we would only pay the first $20,000, and they would be responsible for the rest via scholarships, loans, job income, etc.

Fortunately, both our children saw the financial sense in graduating debt free so they both attended local colleges/universities and lived at home for free. Our daughter earned her Associates Degree then married and found a decent job that only required 2 years of college – so she has not yet continued on to the university.

Often finding a good job isn’t just about the name of the university. It seems to be a combination of luck and willingness to seek opportunities mixed with education major, degree(s) earned, gpa, university name, work/internship experience, a well written resume/portfolio, and a likable personality.

I know some people look down on state university degrees, but it has served our son well so far. He found a good job immediately upon graduation that he really enjoys. It has excellent benefits (including a pension if he stays a minimum of 10 years), offers him fascinating opportunities/experiences, has great growth potential, and pays about $60,000/year. He just recently purchased a 3 bedroom home and is only 23 years old. He is happy with his choices.

One of my children’s friends attended UC Berkeley, had a 4.0 gpa, and received two job offers before graduation with $80,000+ salaries. This friend should have little problem repaying his loans so it was a good choice for him. Another friend who went to a prestigious private university on the coast is currently trying to pay off a $100,000 loan on a $35,000 salary. A third friend had $80,000 in student loans and it took over a year for him to find a less than desirable job just to pay the bills. All 3 went to “prestigious” universities. One got the high paying dream job while the other two are struggling with their choices. So, a prestigious university doesn’t always guarantee you the best high paying job.

What if you don’t currently drink coffee or have any $7/day habits? Maybe I’m just super cheap already, but I’m not seeing anything that I could cut in my lifestyle to save $7/day. (Don’t drive to work, pack my lunch, etc.) I’m sure there are still more ways to save money, but I’d like to hear your ideas.

FWIW, my husband is also of the opinion that saving for your children’s education is silly because they’ll become spoiled and won’t learn how to work hard and earn things for themselves. I disagree because college is pretty darn expensive.

$14 / day isn’t as much of an over exaggeration as you think for a couple. My in-laws go twice per day and spend at least that much each time they go in.

By the way, if you buy a fru-fru drink (skinny style even) you are also consuming at least 150 calories per day more than black coffee. That’s 165lbs worth of extra calories over ten years!

No, student loans are horrible! I hear from some people that they struggle financially because they are paying off their student loans. Some of these people have become Stay at Home Moms since going to college. WHAT A WASTE OF MONEY.

It is VERY possible to go to college without incurring any debt. First off, at that age you cannot get approved for a normal credit card. You can only get approved for those ones where you have to give them x amount of money first, which is usually a few hundred. A few hundred dollars, especially if you have it to “spare” is a fortune when you are a broke college student. So, that is good. In fact, it’s excellent because it can really show a young person how to manage money the right way. If you don’t have it, don’t spend it.

Now, on to my personal story as a college student. I was homeschooled 1st-12th grade. My mother stayed home with me. I was about a year behind in starting out due to extraordinary circumstances. I was doing an accredited curriculum which was self paced. I could have graduated with a legit diploma, but I had found the work to be boring and not worth my time. (Keep in mind that there are a few different ways to teach children what they need to know academically from home. Homeschooling, unschooling, schooling from home but with a private online school, ect.)

When I was a teenager I had other homeschooling friends who were already starting to take college courses. I began to envy them. However, I had it in my mind that I had to finish highschool before I could enroll into college. I was wrong. I finally reached the age of 18. I hadn’t finished my 9th grade, let alone my 12th, so I went out to get my GED. I passed it after a little bit of studying from a GED study book. I then immediately went to enroll into my first college courses.

I applied for financial aid, was approved for the Pell Grant, and had my college completely paid for at my local community college through that. But, to improve my financial situation, I had started volunteering for the college events and New Student Orientation. This landed me a job in student government. It was on campus and the houses were flexible. As long as the campus was open and there were classes going on, I could work. I had a set amount of hours that I had to fill each week and I had to attend meetings. The job was perfect. I also had landed a job working in the school’s cafe as a cashier. The job was less flexible than my other one because the cafe was only open during the hours when the most classes took place. 8-2/3pm. These two student worker jobs paid for my lunches that I had to have at or really close to school due to my extremely busy schedule. I was a full time student working 20 hrs a week and doing a little bit of volunteer work on the weekends. My working did not affect my grades. I graduated with honors. I must admit though, that the jobs were contingent upon my financial aid. They were both workstudy jobs, so I had to be approved for it. If I had used my full loan approved amount, then I would have had to lower my loan amount, but since I opted out of receiving loans, I was able to pocket that money. Along with lunches most days, I also had the arrangement with my mom that I would pay for all of my other expenses, which was mainly gas. I even managed to pay for at least half of my own wedding with the extra income. I was living with my family who paid the household bills. The house was and still is completely paid for, but there were property taxes, which were about $1,200 a year. However, there were paid taxes because my father who was living in it previously did not pay any property tax while he was there, so the amount was at least doubled. I did begin to pay for my food. I’m not sure at what point I began to do this. I needed quicker meals and to start eating better than what was usually carried in the house.

It was difficult working so much, but I could handle it. Not everyone can, but I could have very well gotten through those two years without working both of those part-time jobs. I could have only done one, like the student government job which only required a few hours a week. I didn’t have to have a car and pay for my gas because the school bought everyone bus passes where they could go anywhere in town during bus hours. (That was one of the things that student government did for the students, actually. Isn’t that great? See, our tax dollars don’t always go to waste.) I felt that having my own car was necessary for safety and it really was a lifesaver for the crazy amount of stuff that I was doing.

The only thing that I regret in life is not starting college at the age of 16. It’s my biggest regret.

Coffee bars are currently a trend and big hit, if I do say so myself, in home decorating. I myself am participating in this trend and it’s proven to be a success! Not only is the bar appealing to the eye, but my husband now makes himself a cup of coffee every morning before he goes to work instead of leaving early to buy a coffee from a drive-thru. Win-win! We were gifted the Keurig as a wedding present, so it has cost us very little to set up. I did purchase a cart for the coffee and tea items to be set on, which was about $50. In the future we may upgrade to espresso machines or maybe just add them to the table alongside the Keurig. My husband grew up with his mother making really strong coffee and considers most coffee from a regular coffeemaker to be dishwater. His mom boils the coffee grounds for a little while and makes the coffee look black when you pour it, instead of brown (dishwater).

I don’t see any mention of the pour over method so I’ll post my costs using my Chemex. I gave my Keurig away this past December and purchased the Chemex 8-cup at my local coffee shop. The Mrs. and I used to buy starbucks K-Cups at Costco and are amazed at how much we’re saving these days. Each month we purchase an average of (3) 1-lb bags of our favorite beans at a local shop (Naked) for $8 each. Taking into account the cost of the Chemex assuming a life of 5 years, Chemex filters (100 ct box, 1 per day) and 3 lbs of coffee, we are happily spending $0.99 per day for 32-oz of amazing mind fuel.

The trick for getting a cheap university education all the way up to PhD:
Get a bachelor’s in Europe (except England but the rest of the UK is fine) at (virtually) zero tuition.
Get a research master’s in North America with funding. Getting funding for your living expenses is super easy. Your supervisor usually helps you with that.
Get a PhD with salary in Europe.

Of course you might wanna stop anywhere along the way. Not everybody needs a PhD.

While paying for four years at any school can be outrageous, I suggest doing what my parents did. My sister and I were allowed to apply and decide to go anywhere we’d like, with the understanding that my parents would pay only the first year’s expenses. We lived in a city with only an expensive private school (my sister-in-law went there while living at home, and still managed to rack up over $100K in debt) so my sister and I both left home for school. Knowing you will have to pay for the remaining years seriously affects the decision, but with parents paying the first year, you have a cushion and can adjust to the new school and town without having to get a job right away. I didn’t qualify for need-based aid, and I was accepted into some prestigious universities that didn’t offer any merit based aid, but chose to go to an in-state school that offered me a scholarship. By bringing credits from high school, maintaining the scholarship, and graduating a year early, I was able to graduate without any debt. For our family, this set up provided the perfect transition year from high school to being an adult. Since I had a dorm and meal plan the first year, I didn’t have to worry about rent or groceries and could concentrate on classes and developing good study habits. That became invaluable in the following years, when I did have to work to afford rent and utilities and groceries.

I’m thankful my parents were able to afford to help, but happy they didn’t pay for the whole thing. A lot of my peers were fully funded by their parents, and they were incredibly wasteful, often partying so much they flunked classes and had to retake them, or never learning how to budget for groceries or decrease their electricity consumption.

Historically tuition inflation rates have been roughly double that of general inflation so footnote 3 seems a bit optimistic.