I would like to thank the Maroon for informing me of the $1,600 tuition increase which will take effect next semester.

I’m sure the appropriate office or department was eventually going to inform students of the increase, or maybe they did, and I just didn’t get the memo.

I was walking to the Danna Student Center after class when a writer for the Maroon approached me and asked me some questions about the tuition increase for a story she was writing.

I was completely caught off guard.

I think I had more questions for her than she had for me.

An increase from $27,168 to $28,770 may not seem like much, but $1,600 is a lot of money.

I could get a new computer. I could pay four months rent. I could buy a roundtrip ticket to London and pay for a two week stay at a hotel.

The percentage of financial aid to tuition won’t change, but does this mean my Stafford Loan will increase or my scholarship will increase?

Because of financial reasons, I had already applied to some other schools and had been keeping the thought of transferring in the back of my mind before I learned of the increase.

I know this issue is on students’ minds.

Last week I attended a focus group for Public Relations Student Society of America. We were discussing our experiences with college searches and applications in high school.

The common factor that made it possible for all of us to attend Loyola was the amount of scholarships and financial aid we received.

The biggest issue keeping students today from applying or even thinking about attending college is cost.

As prices keep rising, more and more students will stop thinking a college degree is attainable, even though it is possible.

I don’t want to leave Loyola.

I spoke with a graduate of a communications program at one of the schools I applied to, and her advice was strong and simple, “Stay at Loyola.”

She told me the job opportunities after graduation with a Loyola degree will be beyond what I would find with a degree from any other place I transfer to. The professors here at Loyola are active and experienced experts in their fields of study, and she did not have the same to say about her university.

Loyola was recently ranked number one in the “Great Schools, Great Prices” category by U.S. News and World Report.

 I believe the education, attention from professors and the overall college experience I’m receiving from Loyola would be extremely hard to find at another place, especially in a different city.

I’m not saying it isn’t worth the money; I just question if I can afford it.

Deidre Molin is mass communication sophomore. She can be reached at [email protected].