Understanding Winston-Salem State University Tuition and Fees

Planning for college expenses is a crucial part of the application process. Understanding the costs associated with Winston-Salem State University (WSSU), including tuition, fees, and financial aid options, is an important first step in managing your educational investment.

Cost of Attendance: The Sticker Price

The "Cost of Attendance" represents the total amount of money the average student pays to attend a particular school before receiving any financial aid. It's essentially the school's sticker price. The Cost of Attendance breakdown for Winston-Salem State University differs depending on whether you’re an in-state or out-of-state student - in-state students can expect lower costs for tuition and fees. Because Winston-Salem State University is an out-of-state public institution, out-of-state students would pay more than in-state students.

Financial Aid: Grants and Scholarships

Financial aid can significantly reduce the out-of-pocket expenses for students. Grants and scholarships are particularly valuable because they don't require repayment.

Grant Aid at WSSU

More students getting financial aid means students at Winston-Salem State University are likely getting a pretty good deal on their education. It’s also important to know how much grant aid people tend to receive. Altogether, this is great news - at Winston-Salem State University, MORE students get financial aid, and each award size is HIGHER.

Institutional Aid

The grant dollar amounts include aid from all sources - both federal and institutional. To figure out how strong Winston-Salem State University’s own financial aid program is, we’ll look at how they award their own (non-federal) financial aid dollars. Because more Winston-Salem State University students get institutional aid, it likely offers relatively competitive financial aid. The amount of money that students actually get is just as important (if not more important) than the percent of students who get grants. Right away, it seems like Winston-Salem State University offers less institutional aid than other schools. Second, this can also mean that the school just costs less than the typical school of its type.

Student Loans: Understanding Debt

Aside from grants, the other major way to pay for college is with student loans. The more student loan money you borrow, the more debt you’ll end up with after graduation. Ideally, you want to minimize your student debt as much as possible. It’s generally a bad sign if a school has many students taking out a lot of loans. First, let’s talk about how many students at Winston-Salem State University actually have to take out any student loans at all. It’s very common for college grads in the US to graduate with some debt, but high percentages of students taking on loans at a particular school is a big red flag. High numbers of students with loans is a red flag, and Winston-Salem State University is above average.

Federal Loans

Federal loans tend to have low interest rates, which means they cost less in the long run. High percentages or amounts of federal loans still isn’t a great sign - again, you don’t want to see students burdened with too much debt. At Winston-Salem State University, 82% of all students take out federal loans. At Winston-Salem State University, the average annual federal loan amount is $6307.

Private Loans

Other loans, or private loans, are the last resource students turn to when paying for college. At Winston-Salem State University, 3% of students take out private loans. Just as important as the percentage of students with private loans is the average loan amount. The average private loan amount at Winston-Salem State University is $6861. The percentage of students getting federal loans is greater than those getting private loans, which is a good sign.

Net Price: Your Out-of-Pocket Cost

Finally, we get to the bottom line: what will Winston-Salem State University actually cost YOU? The Net Price is the total cost minus the total aid given. In other words, this is the price you have to pay to the school out of pocket.

Estimating Your Net Price

Most schools have an updated Net Price calculator available.

Expected Family Contribution (EFC)

Once again, the Net Price is the total cost of attending, minus the aid you can expect to get (grants and scholarships). The US government has come up with a standardized way to calculate how much a typical family can afford to pay without help. Colleges use this number as a guideline to decide how much aid to give you, but it's just a guideline. If the Net Price is higher than the EFC, the school will cost more than you can typically afford. This tool will calculate your Expected Family Contribution, or EFC. According to the information you’ve entered above, your Expected Family Contribution should be about $. This is the amount that the federal government thinks you can afford to pay for school. Please note this tool is only an approximation, and your personal situation may cause your EFC to vary.

Considering the Value of WSSU

As a regional school, Winston-Salem State University may not be a household name nationwide, but it's known to people in the local area as a solid school. Compared to some other regional schools, Winston-Salem State University didn't appear on our best value lists. This might be because the net price is higher than for other schools of similar reputation. This isn't the end of the world - you can likely still afford Winston-Salem State University by taking out loans, earning scholarships, or working part-time. Overall, Winston-Salem State University is a decent value, and going to college here will likely pay off over time.

Alternatives and Further Research

Your next step should be to get a better idea of costs and aid availability at similar schools. If you’re interested in Winston-Salem State University, you should check out some other high-value schools that could give you more bang for your buck. Finally, we're going to look at schools that might offer a better value than Winston-Salem State University. To compile this list, we first find schools at similar academic levels, so you have a similar chance at getting in. It’s hard to know exactly what schools will be a great value for you without information on your family income. There are a lot of potential financial benefits that come with attending a school close to home. For example, in-state public schools tend to have subsidized tuitions for state residents.

A Brief History of Winston-Salem State University

The university was established by Dr. Simon Green Atkins in 1892 with funds donated by industrialist John Fox Slater. Dr. Simon Green Atkins distinguished himself in his home state of North Carolina as an advocate of teacher-training programs for African Americans. He founded a small school, Winston-Salem Teachers College, that he developed into Winston-Salem State University, a four-year institution, and oversaw its transition from private to state control. His abiding interest in teacher-training also led him to become a founder of the North Carolina Negro Teachers Association.

The oldest child of a brick layer and former slaves Allen and Eliza Atkins, Simon Green Atkins was born on June 11, 1863, in the village of Haywood, in Chatham County, North Carolina, between Sanford and Raleigh. His town flourished during the period just after the Revolutionary War, but by the late 19th century the railroad and the neighboring town of Moncure had overshadowed it. At one time the area was considered as a location for the state capital as well as the state university.

Read also: Tobago to Tinseltown

Atkins studied in the town school under pioneer black educators who came from St. Augustine’s Normal and Collegiate Institute (later St. Augustine’s College in Raleigh). One of these was Anna Julia Cooper, later prominent for her work as an activist, scholar, feminist, and school administrator in Washington, D.C. This cadre of educators went out into remote communities to teach rural blacks. Atkins also taught at the town school for a while before his college years, and in 1880 he enrolled in St. Augustine’s. He spent summers teaching in the rural schools of Chatham and Moore counties.

After he graduated with distinction in 1884, renowned educator and orator Joseph Charles Price, president of Livingstone College, an African Methodist Episcopal Zion church-supported institution in Salisbury, North Carolina, invited Atkins to join his faculty. Atkins agreed and became grammar school department head. He spent six years at Livingstone (1884-90) and spent the last two years of his tenure there in the dual role as educator and treasurer of the college.

The town educators of Winston (before its merger in 1913 with Salem to become Winston-Salem) lured Atkins to the post as principal of the Depot Street School, where he remained from 1890 to 1895. This was the state’s largest public school for African Americans. His work with the North Carolina Negro Teachers’ Association (NCNTA), which he helped to organize about 1881, had stimulated his interest in teacher-training schools for blacks. He directed this group as it established the foundation for a standard black teachers’ college in the state.

Soon after he began his duties at Depot Street, he intensified his efforts to build such a school for African Americans and sought assistance from the Winston Board of Trade, Chamber of Commerce, and local white residents. By then, the state had begun plans to fund an agricultural college for its African American residents; hearing this, Atkins sought funds to locate the new college in Winston. Local support for this move was good, as the black community donated $2,000, R. J. Reynolds of tobacco fame contributed $500, and Atkins obtained 50 acres (200,000 m2) of land along with the backing of the Chamber of Commerce.

tags: #winston #salem #state #university #tuition #fees