Picking a College on a Budget of Nothing – Brian’s Blog

My oldest daughter is 17 and a junior in high school. College is looming. Where will we find her the best school for the best value?

Let me say right up front that I payed for my own college education with a combination of money I earned, scholarships, and student loans. I would love to foot the bill for all of my kids' college years, but with five of them it's going to be almost impossible. We are going to have to be creative in our education funding. So, picking a school that offers the most value for the money is going to be very important.

I ran across an article at kiplinger.com about the best 25 colleges in the country for under $30,000 per year. I think that any one of them would provide a good education for my daughter, but they all have one problem. They are all pretty far away from Washington.

I really want my kids to have a true college experience, living on their own away from home while being close enough to get home for things like holidays and occasional family events.

In that vein, I have chosen a college from the Kiplingers' list for my oldest daughter.

The New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, in Soccoro, N.M.

My daughter is considering a medical career, and NMT has a pre-med program. It is also the closest school to Washington on the list

She's gonna love Soccoro!