(Featured photo: OCCC student Imdela Aldava – Photo by Peyton Ferguson)
Oklahoma City Community College is located in Oklahoma City off South May Avenue.
According to The College Board, a two-year public community college is $3,440 per year for in-district students.
Here at Oklahoma City Community College, the total cost per credit hour is $135.29 for Oklahoma residents, which adds up to $405.87 per three credit courses.
If a student were to attend The University of Oklahoma, in-state students would be charged $6,605.75, with fees included, per semester, $13,211.50 per year, adding up to about $53,000 for all four years, not including room and board.
In comparison, one years at Oklahoma City Community College only costs a full-time student about $4,500.
Oklahoma City Community College is a cost-effective school, saving thousands of students from going into student loan debt.
“Between the lower tuition costs of community college and minimal debt, you could find yourself earning more than your peers who have 4-year degrees,” Take Charge America Team wrote in 5 Financial Benefits of Attending Community College.
According to the author, many degrees offered at OCCC, such as several health care professions, only require an associate’s degree; hence, why one can earn more than someone with a 4-year degree.
Take Charge America Team wrote about five financial benefits to a community college, one of them being the low costs.
“You’ll only be devoting two years of your life to school. That means you’ll have an extra two years to get ahead on work and start stashing away some savings after school,” Tim Brunicardi the author of 5 Financial Benefits of Attending Community College wrote.
High school students in surrounding communities come to OCCC for concurrent courses, which high schoolers can take that count as both college and high school credit.
Concurrent is a great way to get a head start on a college career at a low cost, while saving money.
Why pay for classes twice as much at a bigger university when one can pay a fraction of the cost at a community college?
“I came to OCCC from OU. OU it was every semester I was looking for scholarships and financial aid, then asking my parents for money and putting money in from my own. I remember the first time I came into OCCC and they were like, ‘Parking is free,’ and ‘you don’t have to pay for this.’ The textbooks are cheaper, the classes are cheaper, everything is cheaper. It has the same resources as OU and every other college,” Imdela Aldava, OCCC student, said.
When attending a community college, students will not feel overwhelmed trying to balance work and school.
Aldava is able to take online courses for more flexibility at work, thanks to OCCC. When only committing for two years, students have time to tuck away extra money for when it is time to transfer to a bigger university.
“Going from a high school to a big university, like OU, was a really big culture shock. I don’t think I would have taken as long if I would’ve gone from high school to OCCC. It’s a nice stepping stone. I feel more comfortable here than I ever did over there [OU],” she said.
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