FCAT Scores 2009 Start Students on Road to Financial Success

FCAT scores 2009 now available

The FCAT scores for 2009 are now out, and parents in Florida can find out where their children are headed academically and possibly financially. FCAT stands for Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test. Students in grades 3-11 take the FCATs, and it’s never too early to start thinking about your child’s future, college and career.

Everyone knows that college graduates make more money. FCAT scores could help or hinder a high school graduate’s chances of getting into their university of choice.

Of course, if you don’t have stellar FCAT scores, that doesn’t mean you won’t be successful, but high FCAT scores just make it a little easier to follow the traditional path of college followed by a career.

Don’t be hasty

Of course, you’re probably going to need personal loans to send your child to college. If your student’s FCAT scores are so stellar that you get a scholarship to an Ivy League school, more power to you. But the reality for most people is that college is expensive.

So I must caution you: just because your FCAT scores in 2009 are good enough to get into an uber-expensive school, that doesn’t mean you should automatically send  your child there. So if you get your student’s FCAT results today, don’t automatically fax an application to Harvard. Here are some excerpts from an article I wrote on a SmartMoney study about private universities versus public.

Nuts and bolts

The SmartMoney report analyzed the cost of private school versus public schools based on out-of-state tuition. It looked at the cost of attending 50  universities and the salaries of alumni three years later and 15 years later.

The results are not surprising. While many Ivy Leaguers do make higher salaries, the extra money they spend repaying their student loans cuts greatly into the return on their investment.

Money-saving tips for college

For students who move to a different state to go to college, private schools cost about 30 percent more. Stay home to go to school and that difference jumps to about 75 percent.

So going to a public school in your home state costs a quarter of what it would cost to go to a private school.

One college-girl’s opinion

As a college graduate myself, here’s my model for the least expensive way to get a degree:

Go to community college first. Tuition is a fraction of what it costs to go to a four-year university. After you transfer and get your bachelor’s degree, it’ll carry just as much weight as everyone else’s.

If you want to go to an out-of state school: Most states consider you a resident after you’ve lived there one year, as long as you only go to school part-time. So move to the place where you want to go to school, attend community college part-time for a year. Then you’ll be able to pay in-state tuition and fees for the rest of your college career.

FCAT scores can save you money

So, if your 2009 FCAT scores are good enough to get you into an expensive, private university, just think of the scholarships you could get for community college or a state school. You could end up getting to go to school for free!

So study hard, get good FCAT scores and embrace your future earning potential.