Here we would like to discuss how misleading statistical data can be, when the exact details of the calculation are not announced.

Johnson College in New Nevada announced an increase of financial aid. They claimed that the average financial aid is $20,000. The cost of education at this college for one year is $25,000. If you think this means that the average cost for a student is $5,000 (for one year), you are mistaken. In reality the college calculated the average financial aid among all aid packages: the complete sum of aid was divided by the number of students who get the aid, not by the number of all students.

In our Average Cost Calculator you can calculate how much a student pays, on average, depending on the percentage of students getting financial aid. Suppose, for example, that only half of all the students in the college receive financial aid. What then would a student pay, on average, for one year? Try changing the default values to see different results.

Average Cost Calculator

Can you calculate the average cost if in reality the data of financial aid was calculated for the 4 years together?