College Cost Calculators

College Cost Calculators College tuition, room and board, scholarships, financial aid, meal plans are all screaming different numbers at high school students and their parents. Adding and subtracting these numbers in attempts to figure out exactly how much a specific college will cost can be a difficult, agonizing task. But, lifes getting easier for students and their parents because all colleges will be forced to post a net price calculator on their Web site by 2011, according to an article in The Washington Post. The actual costs of college can be very different from its advertised sticker price. There are many additional costs that colleges tack on to tuition, and many students and parents do not see all of these costs. Some students are not fully aware of all these costs until they have set foot on campus for freshman year, and are faced with hefty bills to pay. Also, most colleges do not decide financial aid and merit-based scholarships until after a student has already applied. Sometimes colleges will give out large amounts of financial aid late in the spring of a students senior year of high school. Therefore, the financial aid news could come after ones college decision has already been made. However, the college cost calculator that will go into effect in 2011 will give students and parents better estimates about how much a specific college will cost. Some colleges such as MIT, Yale University, Williams College, University of Arkansas and Cornell have been using their own, individual price calculators. The federal government recently provided a uniform college cost calculator template with the help of StudentAid.com and Think Ahead LLC. By 2011, all colleges must adopt some form of a cost calculator. The federal program is uniform for all colleges. This is one of its biggest flaws because not all colleges offer financial aid and merit-based scholarships on similar criteria. The program asks students about eight questions regarding family income. However, the program does not ask about family assets and income exclusions. Also, the program does not consider merit-based scholarships. The federal cost calculator is likely to be inaccurate at times. A college cost calculators is more accurate if it is produced by and is unique to each individual college. It can be personalized to the amount of aid that a college has, and the competition of other students who are applying.

How Long Does It Take to Learn Guitar

How Long Does It Take to Learn Guitar Suzy S. Beginning guitar lessons can be exciting!   But if youre expecting to wake up the morning after your first lesson and suddenly have killer technique, think again.   So how long will it really take to learn?   Unfortunately, theres no straightforward answer.   Check out Beverly Hills instructor Adam S.s take on the frequently asked question: How long will it take me to learn how to play a song? Its a common question I get from many of my beginner students. The answer is different for everyone, but I always preface the fact that it comes down to practicing.   I strongly recommend practicing for a minimum of 15 minutes each day.   That way, you will definitely start to see improvement within a short amount of time â€" usually within a few weeks. For beginners, I recommend starting out by learning the basic open chords.   These chords are: A, A minor, B7, C, C7, D, D minor, D7, E, E minor, E7, F, G and G7. With the knowledge of just these 14 chords (or even just some of them), you will be able to play literally hundreds of songs!   A ton of pop, rock and blues songs utilize the basic open chords.   Most beginner guitar method books should have a chord chart (usually in the back section) that will show you a visual image of how to play them all. This is my BEST advice for beginners, and I see positive results every time. Keep it simple: learn the basic open chords and practice them for 15 minutes per day.   Each week it will get easier and soon you will be able to play an actual song by knowing a few of the open chords.   In time, you may even be able to write your own songs! Adam S. teaches bass guitar, guitar, music performance, music recording, music theory, and songwriting to students of all ages in Beverly Hills, CA. Adam joined the TakeLessons team in June 2012, with over nearly 20 years of experience teaching. Sign up for lessons with Adam, or visit TakeLessons to search for a teacher near you! Interested in Private Lessons? Search thousands of teachers for local and live, online lessons. Sign up for convenient, affordable private lessons today! Search for Your Teacher Photo by blvesboy.