Is BEREA COLLEGE really TUITION FREE? | ALL ABOUT BEREA FINANCES

Summary

In this video, Esther shares her experience as a Berea College graduate, emphasizing Berea's unique tuition-free model and how international students can navigate the financial aspects. She explains that while students don't pay tuition, they work 10-20 hours a week to cover room and board. She discusses common concerns, including taxes, books, and costs during breaks, offering practical advice. Esther highlights Berea's value beyond free tuition, encouraging prospective students to apply and explore the benefits of attending the college.

Takeaways

• 🎓 Berea College is truly tuition-free for students, as donations from alumni and other supporters cover the cost of education.
• 🌍 The application and financial process differs for international students compared to domestic students, so it's important for international students to seek advice from fellow international students.
• 🏠 Room and board are covered by a required student work program where students work 10-20 hours a week.
• 💰 Students receive pay from the work-study program, which helps cover housing, meals, and personal expenses, but it’s not a large amount of money.
• 📚 Students are expected to save $1,000 over the summer to cover taxes and books, which amounts to around $500-600 per semester.
• 📖 Berea provides a $500 loan to help students buy textbooks at the start of each semester, but it's advisable to avoid using this loan unless necessary, as it must be repaid.
• 💼 Summer and holiday housing require direct payments since students are not required to work during these periods, and the cost is usually around $2,500 including meals.
• 🧾 During summer and breaks, taxes are deducted from students' income based on their earnings, with Nigerian students, for example, paying 14% in taxes.
• 💬 Berea offers unique benefits beyond tuition-free education, including valuable work experience, a supportive community, and opportunities that aren't available elsewhere.
• 🔗 The video encourages prospective students to apply to Berea College, as the opportunity to attend is life-changing and worth exploring.

Q & A

Is Berea College truly tuition-free for all students?

Yes, Berea College is tuition-free for all students. The college does not charge tuition, and this is made possible by donations from various donors, including alumni and community members.

What is the role of donations in supporting Berea College's tuition-free policy?

Donations play a crucial role in Berea College's tuition-free policy by providing funds that cover the cost of education, allowing the college to maintain its educational quality and pay for facilities and instructors.

How does Berea College ensure that students cover their room and board expenses?

Students at Berea College cover their room and board expenses by working a minimum of 10 to 20 hours per week as part of the college's work-study program.

What are the typical weekly working hours for students at Berea College?

Students at Berea College typically work between 10 to 20 hours per week, with a minimum of 10 hours required.

How does Berea College assist students with purchasing textbooks and school supplies?

Berea College provides a $500 loan at the beginning of each semester for students to purchase textbooks. Additionally, students often buy used books from each other to save money.

What are the direct expenses that students at Berea College need to cover themselves?

Students at Berea College need to cover direct expenses such as taxes and the cost of books. Taxes are typically around $500 to $600 per semester, and book expenses are managed through the work-study program and the $500 loan.

How does the summer work-study program at Berea College help students pay for summer housing and meals?

During the summer, students at Berea College work to earn money that directly covers their summer housing and meals, as they are not required to work during regular semesters for these expenses.

Why is it important for international students to seek advice from other international students about Berea College?

International students should seek advice from other international students because the admission process and financial considerations differ from those of domestic students, and international students have unique insights into these processes.

What is the significance of the $500 loan provided by Berea College for book purchases?

The $500 loan is significant as it helps students cover the cost of textbooks at the beginning of the semester. However, it's important for students to use this loan wisely, as it needs to be repaid during the semester.

How does Berea College handle taxes for international students?

Berea College handles taxes for international students by deducting a percentage from their income during the summer and breaks, with the rate varying depending on the student's country of origin.

What advice does the speaker give to those considering applying to Berea College?

The speaker encourages anyone considering Berea College to apply, emphasizing that the college offers more than just a tuition-free education and that the experience is unique and valuable.

Outlines

00:00

🎓 Berea College Overview and Introduction

The speaker introduces themselves and the purpose of the video. They mention their recent graduation from Berea College and emphasize that this video aims to provide important information for students preparing to attend Berea College. The speaker addresses misconceptions about hidden costs and urges potential students to trust the process, especially international students, by differentiating their experience from domestic students regarding finances and admission.

05:02

💸 Is Berea College Really Tuition-Free?

Berea College does not charge tuition, thanks to donations from alumni, community members, and others who fund the college. These funds help cover the cost of education and other expenses. The speaker stresses that the education at Berea is expensive in value, but students don't pay for it directly. International students should seek advice from other international students instead of domestic ones, as their financial situations and processes differ.

10:04

🏠 Room and Board at Berea College

The speaker explains that while tuition is free, students 'indirectly' pay for room and board by working 10 to 20 hours per week. The college requires students to work, and this work covers housing and meals. They highlight the benefits of this system, noting that students gain work experience while only working a few hours compared to others who might work full-time while attending college.

📚 What Expenses Do Students Cover?

Students need to cover taxes and books, which are typically around $500-$600 per semester. Some international students may be exempt from taxes, depending on their country's agreement with the U.S. The college also offers a $500 loan to buy books from its bookstore, though the speaker advises against using it unless necessary because it can only be used at the Berea bookstore and must be repaid by the end of the semester.

🌞 Costs During Summer and Breaks

During summer or breaks, students must pay for room and board directly because they aren't required to work. Summer housing, including meals, costs around $2500. Taxes during the summer are based on how much a student earns, with the percentage for Nigerians being 14%. The speaker encourages international students to be aware of these additional costs as they aren't always clearly explained.

❓ Final Thoughts and Encouragement

The speaker concludes by addressing common questions about Berea College and assures viewers that the college is indeed tuition-free. They emphasize that Berea offers many unique benefits beyond the absence of tuition, encouraging anyone interested to apply. They express enthusiasm for Berea’s community and value, urging viewers to ask further questions in the comments.

Keywords

💡Berea College

Berea College is a private liberal arts college in Kentucky, USA, known for its tuition-free policy. In the video, the speaker discusses her experience as a graduate and addresses common questions about the college's financial model. The term is central to the video as it is the institution being discussed.

💡Tuition-free

Tuition-free refers to the policy at Berea College where students are not required to pay for tuition. This is a key aspect of the college's mission and is highlighted in the video as a significant benefit for students. The speaker clarifies that while tuition is covered, there are other costs associated with attending the college.

💡International Students

International students are non-domestic students who come from outside the United States. The video emphasizes the differences in the admission and financial processes for international students compared to domestic ones. The speaker advises international students to seek information from their peers to better understand their unique situation at Berea College.

💡Work-study

Work-study is a program where students work part-time to help cover their educational expenses. At Berea College, students are required to work a minimum of 10 hours a week to contribute to their room, board, and meals. This is a distinctive feature of Berea's model, as it allows students to earn money for personal expenses while gaining work experience.

💡Room and Board

Room and board refers to the cost of housing and meals provided by the college. The video explains that students at Berea College cover these costs through their work-study program, thus not having to pay out-of-pocket for these expenses during the academic year.

💡Donors

Donors are individuals or organizations that contribute financially to Berea College, allowing it to maintain its tuition-free policy. The video mentions that donations are a crucial part of how the college operates, with alumni and community members being significant contributors.

💡Payroll

Payroll in the context of the video refers to the system by which students at Berea College are paid for their work-study hours. It is a mechanism that allows students to earn money to cover personal expenses and is part of the college's financial support structure.

💡Summer Housing

Summer housing is the cost of staying on campus during the summer months. The video explains that unlike the regular academic year, students are required to pay for summer housing and meals directly, as they are not working the required hours to cover these costs through their work-study program.

💡Taxes

Taxes in this context refer to the mandatory payments that students make based on their earnings from work-study during the academic year. The video specifies that the amount of taxes varies depending on the student's country of origin and the agreements between that country and the United States.

💡Books and Supplies

Books and supplies are educational materials that students are required to purchase. The video discusses that while Berea College provides a loan for book purchases, students often find it more cost-effective to buy from other students or online sources. This is an example of how students manage their educational expenses at Berea.

Highlights

Berea College is truly tuition-free, and you don't pay for tuition due to donations from community members and alumni.

International students have a different admission process and financial obligations compared to domestic students.

Berea College requires all students to work 10 to 20 hours per week, which covers room, board, and meals.

While working 10 hours a week, you are also paid, allowing students to manage personal expenses during the semester.

Students are required to save around $1,000 over the summer to cover their taxes and books for the upcoming semester.

Taxes vary based on a student's country, with some international students not required to pay U.S. taxes.

Berea provides a $500 loan at the beginning of each semester for purchasing books, but it's a loan specifically for use in the Berea bookstore.

Summer housing, Thanksgiving, and other break housing options are not free, and students must pay directly for them if they stay on campus.

During the summer and breaks, taxes are based on how much the student earns, with an example of 14% tax for Nigerians.

Berea College offers unique benefits beyond being tuition-free, including life experiences and skills you can't gain elsewhere.

Many students choose to buy books from other students or cheaper online sources to avoid using the $500 Berea bookstore loan.

Room and board during summer or breaks can be paid off by working over the summer.

Berea’s work-study program provides valuable work experience for students, enhancing their resumes after graduation.

Some international students are exempt from certain taxes based on their country's agreement with the U.S.

Berea encourages prospective students to apply and trust the process, as the college offers opportunities not easily found elsewhere.

Transcripts

there's a page on berea website where

you can actually see what the cost of

education is and brewery is expensive

[Music]

hi everyone welcome to my channel my

name is esther it's been a hot minute i

know that it's been so long and yeah a

lot has been happening so if you follow

me on my social media outside of the

youtube community tab because i don't

really post on there yet at least i'm

trying to post more on the community tab

but if you follow me on my social media

you'll see that i've graduated from

berea college and yeah that's happening

and there's a couple of things to go

with that that you guys will see but

they're not gonna be on this channel

they're gonna be on my other channel so

if you're not subscribed you're gonna be

missing out anyways i don't want to go

into all of that too much in this video

so this video is really important

because like right now a lot of students

are preparing to go to berea college

this fall and also a lot of people are

still planning to free college it will

always be applying to bernie college and

i think that this information is really

helpful because for some people it's

even going to make or break whether or

not they'll apply because they feel like

there's always like some hidden agenda

with a school that would tell you like

oh we're going to take care of your

tuition and stuff like that so

they're like no i don't want to call for

that and they end up not applying so

it's always good to know what happens

behind the scenes so that you can

actually trust the process and then just

go ahead with it first of all i want to

say that when it comes to finances and

like

the application process the admission

process for international students to

burrito it's different compared to

domestic students as an international

student don't go around asking domestic

students about like the admission

process or like stuff about the finances

how much they pay and all because it's

not the same it just doesn't work the

same way if you go around asking them

and they tell you something you're

thinking oh this is going to be my

situation and then you end up not

playing meanwhile that's not really the

situation so just kind of you know i

guess speak more to other international

students and just kind of get ideas from

them because that's where you really

knew how things work so i'm going to say

because this is one question that

everybody always has about berea is

berea really tuition free well yes berea

is really tuition free when you come to

berea you don't pay tuition and brewery

is expensive when it comes to the

quality of the education when it comes

to the worth of the education

it's expensive there's a page on berea

website where you can actually see

what the cost of education is but you

don't have to pay that and that's

because there are people who donate to

free college like donate like lots and

lots of money to the college and that's

what keeps it running that's how they're

able to take care of the like school

that's how they can have buildings

that's how they can pay instructors

quality instructors you know so

there's a reason behind it it's not just

out of nowhere and donors to berea

college are usually like community

members people from all over the country

people from outside the country as well

so some of these people are also alumni

like people who graduate from berea and

then later they're like you know i want

to give back to berry college and so

they donate money as well so yeah that's

pretty much what makes berea like what

it is you know another question that

people always ask is um okay so what

about room and board what about food

housing and things like that how does

that work well that in a way you kind of

pay for it but it's not in the way that

you think where you're like oh my god

how am i gonna be able to afford that no

you never ever have to worry about that

and that's because every student is

required to work and that's the way the

college is designed so you're required

to work 10 to 20 hours a week minimum 10

maximum of 20 hours a week and you don't

have to work over 10 hours you know you

don't have to work over 10 hours i only

ever worked 10 hours a week except over

the summer so during the semester you

can only walk 10 to 20 hours a week and

by working at least 10 hours

you literally already take care of your

housing you take care of your meals and

when it comes to like how much students

get paid and stuff like there's like a

payroll thingy but i don't want to go

into that in this video it's not a lot

of money like i don't know some people

might think it's a lot of money but it's

money that you know i guess sustains you

basically but yeah you indirectly pay

for housing and meals and then you also

get your paycheck that you know you used

to take care of your personal expenses

during the semester and that's basically

how barrier runs as long as you go to

school like you just do normal things

which is go to school and work like

you're good like you're literally good

and working 10 hours a week like y'all

do you know how much people work

like to go to college i guess in america

people who don't have their parents

maybe paid intuition or whatever they

have to work like almost full time while

going to school at the same time and

they still graduate with debt but with

berea you're literally only working 10

hours a week and on top of that the work

gives you experience for when you

graduate so it's a win-win for you now

there are some things that you directly

pay like you actually pay to bury like

you take out money that you work for and

then you pay to berea and that would be

your taxes and your books so whenever

you apply to burrito you see that they

talk about like saving a thousand

dollars over the summer to um you know

take care of your semester expenses and

that confuses people because they don't

know what that money is for but

basically that's for your taxes taxes

each semester is usually about five

hundred dollars to six hundred dollars

depending on your country's agreement

with the united states some

international students from certain

countries don't actually pay those taxes

which is awesome because you just get

your money to yourself but i mean five

hundred dollars a semester that's not

too bad you're going to be fine like you

just need to know how to save your money

and you'll be good and like school

supplies you pay for that yourself as

well like your books and stuff but like

you know those things are not like crazy

expensive like sometimes yeah you might

have a textbook that's like super

expensive but really most students just

end up buying from each other so you buy

a textbook from a student and then if

you have that one textbook that's super

expensive and you have to buy it

directly from like the bookstore then

you can just like you know spare that

one now i wanted to say that berea does

have a bookstore which um you can

purchase your books from but usually the

books are a little bit more expensive

compared to like buying from another

student or buying from like other online

um sources another thing is that berea

at the beginning of each semester gives

you a 500 kind of like a loan to buy

your books so you don't have to spend

all 500 or whatever they're just giving

you like okay to start the semester and

you need money to buy books you can use

this money to buy your books um but most

students avoid using that money because

the five hundred dollars that they give

you as a loan for books just only

applies to like the berea bookstore

website so you can use it like you know

take the money for yourself and go and

buy a book from a student or whatever

you're only going to use your own money

if you're buying from a student i just

wanted to mention that because when

you're going to berea for the first time

like this year those people that are

going this year and then you see 500

you're like oh my gosh free money for

books no it's a loan you're gonna have

to pay later during the semester before

the semester ends so just be careful and

just kind of know what you're doing with

the money if you need to use it because

there's some textbooks you may not find

like elsewhere like if you find it

elsewhere it might be more expensive

than the berea bookstore so maybe those

kind of textbooks you can use the berea

loan the 500 is like part of it to buy

that kind of textbook online if you

don't need to use it i wouldn't advise

you to use it you just only use it when

necessary so for summer housing summer

room and board not only summer but also

like during any break so summer

thanksgiving christmas break or winter

break if you decide to stay on campus

you're going to pay

directly for room and board because

you're not working like you're not

required to work during that time so

there's no way you're making up for the

room and board summer housing is usually

like maybe like 2500 including meals

usually it's combined you have to pay

for room and board together by working

over the summer you're able to pay up

that money so that's where you're paying

directly since the summer is not like a

semester it's just like the summer it's

just a break or like any other break as

well you don't have like a chunk of

taxes that are going to be sitting in

your student account during the semester

is put in your student account as a

chunk for that semester during the

summer you pay taxes based on how much

you earn and that's because it's not

fixed like they don't know how much

students are gonna work during the

summer they don't know if students are

even gonna decide to work at all so the

taxes during the summer and during every

other holiday is based on how much you

make so if you make 500

this pay will then they remove a

percentage of your taxes so for

nigerians the percentage is about 14

so each time you get paid over the

summer and over the breaks they remove

14

from your income so you gotta note that

a lot of people don't know this because

those are just i mean very can really

say all the things there's like so many

things that they can't really explain in

paper or in writing so that's why you

just kind of comment and find out

yourself but i mean if i know it why not

tell you guys okay so what else what

else what else yeah so that's pretty

much everything that goes with finances

every college i mean i hope that i

covered everything but if you have

questions or like confusions please

don't hesitate to um ask me in the

comment section i will be happy to

respond but you know it's pretty

it's pretty real like maria is real

breeze tuition free berea

yo if i start to tell you there's like

so many other things barbarian that's so

amazing that i can't even start to

explain in this video i'm talking about

the things that you gain from being a

barrier that you just cannot get

elsewhere you just cannot get elsewhere

even when you're giving them your money

you're paying tuition you just you just

don't get those things elsewhere and so

it's more than just even the tuition

free there's like so much more and it's

amazing about maria and so i would

really encourage anyone that's

considering it you know it doesn't hurt

just apply you never know

you get in so thank you so much for

watching i hope that this really helps a

lot of people answer the questions the

burning questions about very college um

so yes i will see you guys in my next

video

[Music]