Price-shopping and calculating dual enrollment tuition is relatively straight forward, but even free dual enrollment programs have extra fees, and sometimes these can break your Homeschooling for College Credit budget. Here are a few ways to manage those extra expenses.
Textbooks
This is not always easy since some colleges will require digital codes that you have to buy new, but yours doesn’t…
- Borrow from Libraries: Did you know that some libraries carry textbooks? Check if your local library or college library has the required textbooks.
- Buy Used: Websites Amazon, or eBay often have cheaper versions for older editions.
- Rentals: Your bookstore or favorite online retailer may rent the book for a reduced price.
- Open Educational Resources like OpenStax are completely free. Ask your professor if he/she has considered using products like these. Even if it doesn’t benefit you this term, encouraging educators to be mindful of costs will help everyone.
- Swap with Other Students: Create a local or online textbook exchange among homeschooling families or dual enrollment students.
- The HS4CC Marketplace allows you to buy and sell your gently used materials to other parents who need them.
- “Wait until class starts.” I received this advice several years ago and it has saved my family hundreds of dollars. The last class my son took for his degree had 2 books plus digital code listed as “required” by his bookstore. The total was over $270, but I didn’t buy them in advance. On the first day, the professor distributed a pdf file that had all of the required reading (free) and told them the digital code would give them access to “extra resources” but was not required. Whew!
Technology
- Utilize Open-Source Software: Instead of buying expensive software like Microsoft Office, use free alternatives like Google Workspace or LibreOffice. Many colleges also offer free software for enrolled students.
- Leverage Student Discounts: Many companies, such as Adobe or Amazon, offer discounts to students with a valid school email address.
- Tap into Free Internet Access: If internet costs are an issue, check local libraries, cafes, or community centers offering free Wi-Fi.
Proctoring
When students take tests remotely, there is often a fee for supervising the test. This proctoring / administration fee can range from $5 to $30. These costs add up if your student takes a few exams every semester that require a proctor.
- CLEP exams can be taken at home using remote proctoring. This service carries a $30 fee but you can have that waived if you first earn a voucher through ModernStates.org. The voucher is free to earn.
- If you need to use a local testing center for an exam, ask the center if they’ll give you a discount for taking multiple exams in one session. I did this with my DSST exams, taking all 3 in one day and paying one proctor fee ($25) instead of three individual test fees ($25 x 3).
- Ask your college or professor if you can procure a suitable proctor instead of paying for a web-service. I did this for a grad school exam I needed to take. Rather than paying $30 for a web proctor, I asked our local public librarian if she would proctor my exam at the library. She agreed to do so as a courtesy since I was a resident of the city. This was arranged between my college and the librarian at no cost to me.
Labs
In almost every case, courses that have labs will carry lab fees. You can always contact the college in advance to find out (a) if there are lab fees (b) what they are (c) if that is a required cost, or a recommended cost.
Here are some lab subjects where a lab fee is expected:
General Biology
General Chemistry
Physics
Anatomy and Physiology
Microbiology
Music
Astronomy
Geology
Culinary Arts
Welding Technology
Automotive Technology
Forensics
Robotics
Horticulture
Medical Laboratory Technology
Environmental Science
Technical Theater
Art Studio
Nursing/Health Science Labs
Fire Science
- When possible, wait on the expensive lab courses until after high school. After high school your student may have access to financial aid, scholarships, and grants to help fund these classes.
- If you must take labs in high school, space them out so you just take one per semester. Bundle them with the more affordable non-lab classes to fill out the schedule.
- In states with high school graduation requirements, consider meeting any lab requirements with a homeschool high school course instead of a college course. You can often DIY a wonderful class for very low cost.
- If you structure a homeschool lab science course for your teen, pair it with a CLEP exam (free with a voucher from Modern States). While this won’t generate lab credit in college, most non-STEM degrees require 2 science courses (one with lab, one without) so your CLEP may check the box for the non-lab science, allowing you to save your valuable budget to pay for the more expensive required lab science.
