You don’t necessarily get what you pay for in education.
You can send your student to the most expensive private high school in town, but if he doesn’t pay attention and participate in the promised small classes, he won’t have a college admissions advantage over the academically engaged student at the large public high school down the street.
High-priced SAT tutors can’t raise scores for students who won’t practice the test-taking techniques. But a $14.95 book can work wonders for the committed test prepper.
If your student is getting a C in chemistry because she won’t turn in her assignments, a tutor isn’t going to fix that problem.
An expensive private college counselor can’t change the likely outcome for the student who, in spite of multiple C’s on his transcript, refuses to consider schools outside of the Ivy League.
You can attend an expensive private college at the top of the US news rankings, but if you don’t take advantage of the boundless opportunities available to you, if you waste those four years doing just enough to get by, you’ll gain no life advantage over the student who transferred from a community college to a four-year public school and spent every day trying to earn a return on her educational investment.
If you have the means to pay more for your education, remember that you’re only offered what you pay for. Whether or not you get what you pay for is up to you.
And if you don’t have the means, remember that work ethic, character, curiosity, and an interest in learning are not only life game-changers, but also free.