The Great American Dream is that each future generation has the opportunity for a better life than their parents and grandparents. And part of that upward climb to increased prosperity has included the attainment of higher education for your children and grandchildren. But what if higher education suddenly became so costly that only the wealthy were able to afford it? Most of you may think: in today’s day and age, there are many programs available to allow anyone that wants to attend a university to do so. But aside from an outright scholarship the only real option open to many families is the utilization of debt to fund higher education. But this was not always the case in the United States; it used to be that college-bound students could often pay their way by working part-time to pay for education expenses. However, things have changed.
Lizzie O’Leary and Eliza Mills, “How the Deck Is Stacked,” Marketplace.org, report that Forty-two million people in the United States have student loan debt, a total of about $1.3 trillion worth of outstanding debt. It’s a big number, even considering the fact that the biggest reason there’s so much student loan debt is because more and more people — and not just those whose families can afford it upfront — are going to college. The average amount of debt on student loans is about $37,000, but whether someone owes $5,000 or $100,000, debt can cast a shadow over their entire life.
So, what is the solution? To obtain a college education debt free or at a price that makes sense. You can achieve this by taking full advantage of the educational system offered abroad. The Dominican Republic has a list of top quality academically competitive ivy league equivalents universities both private and public, with the UASD being the oldest university in the Americas (now public). It was founded around 500 years ago (give or take a decade or so) in Santo Domingo by Papal Decree, and it still stands today. There are also a large number of private universities in the country with at least 3 or 4 in the top tier category. Also, consider that job growth and individual opportunities are not going to be exclusive to the United States or even Europe for that matter going forward. Obtaining knowledge, experience and also a second language will help up and coming university graduates to be better prepared for a world that will be very different than what their parents and grandparents experienced. (yet another reason to consider expatriation).
You are probably thinking: you cannot get a good education outside of the United States, and that any Diploma earned from a university or college in another country will not have merit in the U.S. this is not the case. India has produced some of the best computer programmers in the world over the past few years. But while we cannot offer in-depth insight into every other country on the planet, we can tell you about our own experience in the Dominican Republic.
What Are the Benefits of a University Education in The Dominican Republic?
- The opportunity to obtain a quality education debt free (and many universities in Europe will gladly accept credits for transfer).
- The opportunity to become fluent in another language (Spanish speakers are one of the fastest growing percentages of the population in North America).
- The chance for mom and dad to save on boarding costs and have a real estate Investment/retirement property (by buying a new condo for possibly almost the same costs as four-year room and board at many American Universities) Take a look at some of the condos here
- The opportunity to obtain another citizenship, thus expanding employment options in the future (and if the student has residency in the island, they pay half the tuition charged to foreigners).
