Free College Education?

Question

Are there any countries that provide free secondary education? If so, please name them. I'm researching early for my preteen sons.

Answer 1

If you are a citizen or LEGAL resident of the U.S. then secondary education is free -- in fact, mandatory up to age 16. If you are speaking of POST secondary education, i.e. university, then why on earth SHOULD some country provide it? That is your responsibility as a parent.

There are some things NOW however that you can begin doing to help the situation. First, make sure your sons study hard so they are eligible for scholarships. Second, start savings accounts for them. Again, if you live in the U.S. many states offer special tax deferred or even tax free education funds you can use (Kansas has one). You can also encourage your boys to get jobs when they are old enough and help save on their own. Finally, there is the way most people do it, with financial aid and student loans.

Please DON'T foist your kids' educations off on taxpayers of YOUR country or any other -- start now to make a good education possible for them.

Answer 2

There are some countries that provide free or low cost higher education (university). This is sometimes confined to citizens of those countries, sometimes confined to residents, and sometimes simply confined to those who are fluent in the local language.

All English-speaking universities charge tuition. But if your children are fluent in, say, Czech or Islandic or Bulgarian, then they can study at universities in those countries at no cost, or very low cost. But note that some countries (Bulgaria, Greece, etc.) have *issues* with their higher education system, bad enough that their degrees are not always recognised in the US.

In addition, the education systems, K-12, often differ between US and elsewhere, which can make enrolling in a foreign university tricky for a US student. For example, the UK. By the time a UK student has reached university, they've actually completed one extra year of schooling. Thus their universities won't admit US high school grads who simply have a normal high school diploma. Instead, they'd need an IB diploma, or to have done at least 3 AP exams at a score of 4 or higher, and to scored above a certain level on the SAT, and done certain SAT II exams. In effect, they need to prove that they have the equivalent level of knowledge to a home student.

So if your kids do or will speak any European languages fluently, check the websites for universities in those countries. They could well be free of charge, or very low cost, for people who are fluent. Then check to see if that degree is the equivalent to one from a US university.

Know that there are actually some universities in the US that, if you can get in - and admissions is highly competitive - the tuition is free:

The Cooper Union, in NYC
Olin College, in Massachusetts
The Curtis Institute, in Philadelphia
The Yale School of Music, in New Haven

Of course, CU only offers art, architecture and engineering. Olin is only engineering. Curtis and Yale are both music.

There are other schools that are free - the military academies, for example - but military service is obligatory, and admissions are highly competitive.

The other option is to go any school that has a ROTC program. Then the military will pay for your studies - so long as you major in specific things, and join the military afterwards.

Hope this gave you some options.

Answer 3

You won't find any countries that will offer free secondary education to non-citizens nor will you have any luck searching for countries which provide free higher education.

The cost is usually very expensive and for secondary education, most countries request that you pay the amount of the education in full before your child commences studies.