Least Affordable Colleges List By Newsweek, College Prowler

In the long run, these schools may not pay off for their students.

Newsweek and College Prowler released its list of America's least affordable schools.

The rankings were calculated by weighing how much debt the average student incurs while at the college compared to the likely salary most students will later be paid when they join the work force.

Newsweek's list includes 25 schools, and in the slideshow below, we've got the top 15 least affordable schools.

So, take a peek at which schools crack this list, and may these findings help students stay financially savvy during school searches.

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• 15. Goucher College

  Baltimore, Maryland Photo Credit: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=397729953572563&set=a.397729926905899.101196.128923233786571&type=3&theater" target="_hplink">Facebook</a>

• 14. Eckerd College

  Saint Petersburg, Florida Photo Credit: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150293701301664&set=pb.44288001663.0.1345134800&type=3&theater" target="_hplink">Facebook</a>

• 13. University of North Dakota (out-of-state)

  Grand Forks, North Dakota Photo Credit: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150782034195011&set=a.10150782034185011.463365.9275555010&type=3&theater" target="_hplink">Facebook</a>

• 12. Campbell University

  Buies Creek, North Carolina Photo Credit: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=419920044701416&set=a.419908368035917.115598.261253197234769&type=1&theater" target="_hplink">Facebook</a>

• 11. Cedar Crest College

  Allentown, Pennsylvania Photo Credit: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150669181179432&set=pb.163503869431.0.1345230560&type=3&theater" target="_hplink">Facebook</a>

• 10. SUNY at Fredonia (out-of-state)

  Fredonia, New York Photo Credit: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=197015920426257&set=a.197015913759591.41770.197006183760564&type=1&theater" target="_hplink">Facebook</a>

• 9. Misericordia University

  Dallas, Pennsylvania Photo Credit: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=426008160755241&set=pb.290902457599146.0.1345231719&type=3&theater" target="_hplink">Facebook</a>

• 8. Delaware State University (out-of-state)

  Dover, Delaware Photo Credit: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150894414636390&set=pb.34929896389.0.1345231918&type=3&theater" target="_hplink">Facebook</a>

• 7. Suffolk University

  Boston, Massachusetts Photo Credit: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=260767530616295&set=a.260767497282965.94412.260726997287015&type=3&theater" target="_hplink">Facebook</a>

• 6. Mount Vernon Nazarene University

  Mount Vernon, Ohio Photo Credit: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=482487007948&set=a.297338637948.147906.22280927948&type=3&theater" target="_hplink">Facebook</a>

• 5. Hawaii Pacific University

  Honolulu, Hawaii Photo Credit: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=393378317565&set=a.393370737565.174804.5780337565&type=3&theater" target="_hplink">Facebook</a>

• 4. New York University

  New York, New York Photo Credit: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150097209618689&set=a.10150097206403689.297959.103256838688&type=3&theater" target="_hplink">Facebook</a>

• 3. Ashland University

  Ashland, Ohio Photo Credit: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=406243096063840&set=a.406242882730528.95960.259651604056324&type=3&theater" target="_hplink">Facebook</a>

• 2. Nazareth College

  Rochester, New York Photo Credit: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150616494497499&set=a.10150616494472499.383325.6177402498&type=3&theater" target="_hplink">Facebook</a>

• 1. Sacred Heart University

  Fairfield, Connecticut Photo Credit: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150591486078883&set=a.10150591486058883.389319.6794753882&type=3&theater" target="_hplink">Facebook</a>

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Comments

[sevensun1]

04:12 AM on 11/27/2012

Paying 32k a semester at my current. I actually dig it. They promote academic achievement rather than athletics. We don't even have a football team. Greek life consists mainly of either academic or those involved in the PFA.

[Both Wings 2 fly]

10:03 AM on 10/18/2012

I was fortunate enough to be able to go to one of these colleges, with a VA voc rehab, grant.
The small classes, the bright professors, most Fullbright recipients , and the abliity to write my own degree. My committee, was an artist, philosopher, and a physics teacher, taking all three combining them into one course, allowed to become a generalist.
This led me to a career of being in the middle between management and labor, for Very large events.
I had learned how to learn.
Sua Sponte
Choice= Republic vs plutocracy

[Nelora]

03:29 PM on 08/30/2012

How funny. I'm going to North Dakota State University out-of-state and one the of least affordable colleges was our rival, University of North Dakota for out-of-state. Guess I chose the right college.

[Jes from Kemah]

06:34 PM on 08/28/2012

Skidmore isn't in there?

[CapsFan1988]

03:55 PM on 08/28/2012

I've never heard of the vast majority of these colleges. where is Harvard, Yale, Dartmouth etc?

[HoyaHoyaSaxa]

08:03 PM on 08/29/2012

Harvard and Yale fully fund anybody who can't pay.

[RickinBoca]

11:22 AM on 08/27/2012

What a bunch of crap. Most of these are great universities and many talented students receive tuition aid and those who don't usually have wealthy parents who can afford the expense.

You DID forget to mention all those for-profit education (diploma maybe) mills that charge 30K a year to students with no other possibilities. The students must take loans to complete programs that may be unaccredited; yet they are stuck with the debt and NO job.

Is there a potential conflict here? After all some these education scams advertise here.

[tsimmons8]

11:16 AM on 08/27/2012

This is not a credible list. Newsweek screwed up calculations with multiple schools, most prominently Hawaii Pacific University, omitting the percentage of debt of its graduates - 37 percent. Other schools on the "ranking" had graduate debt rates of 54 percent to 99 percent. Worse yet, when the Honolulu Star-Advertiser called Newsweek on its error, the magazine said it was "unable" to correct the ranking, even through it was based on bad data. Newsweak. See the Star-Advertiser story at http://bit.ly/OxKzpO

[eward011]

08:30 AM on 08/27/2012

not surprised about Goucher being on the list. I am a student there who thankfully doesnt have to pay $40,000 a year due to my mother being an employee. yay free tuition!!

[PamperedHousecat]

01:45 PM on 08/27/2012

Hope you do well. I've never heard of this college, but thee is no way I could have afforded it.
Just one question, and I'm not trying to besmersch you.
However, you're able to go to Goucher BECAUSE of your mother's employment. I'm sure your mother is not having money taken out of her check because of your tuition, right?
Was there a place saved in the freshman class for students of employees, assuming they met all the other requirements?
On the other hand, I'm sure you and most others have heard that "affirmative action" based on previous exclusions by race, ethnicities, religion or sex, are under attack, and there are those who say "it is unfair".
Would you say your ability to go to Goucher because of your mother's employment is unfair, and should NOT be allowed?
Just askin'?
ps: If my family could help me or my children achieve their dream?...I'd go for it in a minute.

[squirrely girl]

07:09 PM on 08/27/2012

The ability for dependents to attend the school where one is employed for free is considered a part of the overall compensation package that employee receives. Short of being the president of a university or high ranking admin, college and university faculty and staff aren't raking in the dough... letting one's dependents attend that school for free (don't worry... they still have to meet the same admission standards) is the least a college or university could do...

[eward011]

09:49 AM on 08/28/2012

In regards to the tuition question, my parents do not pay full tuition for my education however, they still have to pay for my room and boarding which i would say is about $10,000 for housing and then it depends on how many books i need for classes to say how much that will cost. My parents are teachers so there are restrictions...meaning that I too have to contribute to my education in some ways (books, permit parking, food, personal care, clothing, etc...). And for students who also have parents that are employees at Goucher, there are no special spots for us. We're just like the rest of the students there. If you had a good enough GPA to get into Goucher regardless of your parents working there, you might be accepted. But if you do not they will reject you as well. Goucher is a very open minded school. There are people here of all races and ethnicities, religious views and orientations. There is a large(ish) LGBT group here at Goucher as well. As a Goucher student who has a parent employee I would say that it isn't "unfair" because we are under the exact same amount of stress and commitments as every other Goucher classmate. If we screw up in anyway that impacts our ability to continue at Goucher we would either be given a second chance to turn things around, asked to leave or take a semester off from school. One of the reasons I am a

[wandylou]

06:52 PM on 08/26/2012

No problem, anyone can go to college.... Romney says: just go borrow money from your parents if you have to.

[chemguy]

06:26 PM on 08/26/2012

Who, in their right mind, would go to University of North Dakota from out-of-state???

[realpragmatist]

02:26 PM on 08/27/2012

People from other countries for who an American University education is a prestigious in their countries - that would be lot of great countries like India, China, South Korea, Japan. They have national universities but you need to be in the top 2% or less to get into them (e.g. 0.6% to get into the top national university in South Korea).

[whosbinfarteen]

06:16 PM on 08/26/2012

USC

University of Spoiled Children

[WSAY]

06:15 PM on 08/26/2012

Never heard of most of them.

[Widespread Panic]

05:53 PM on 08/26/2012

"Peak"????

[h23154]

05:37 PM on 08/26/2012

State school rates for people from out of state should not even be included since the tuition in theory is making up for a lack of tax contributions. Other than that, aside from NYU, my response is: "Who cares?" The stupid children of people with money to burn need somewhere to play for four years after high school. I'm a surprised by NYU, however because of the post-college income factor. I know it's god awful expensive, but I would have thought the grads make it up to a greater extent than they apparently do.

[ramal]

05:35 PM on 08/26/2012

If your parents can afford to send you there you probably don't have to worry to seriously about a job after graduating.

[CapsFan1988]

03:57 PM on 08/28/2012

Agreed. I highly doubt they are worrying too much about financial aid or student loans either!