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A college education is the best investment you can make in your life. However, it is also one of the largest single expenses you will encounter in your life. This post looks purely at the financial aspects of getting a college education.

In the September 18th edition of Business Week there was a article on the Best Places to Launch a Career. They included a list of 50 large companies including Walt Disney, Lockheed Martin. Deloitte and Touche, Goldman Sachs and Enterprise Rent-A-Car.

Forty Six of the companies listed the trait they most desire for entry-level workers. The number one trait was College Major (13 responses). Next on the list was Leadership (10) followed by Analytical Skills (7). There there was one very interesting trait that was not mentioned by any company. That trait was the college from which the entry-level worker graduated.

This leads me to the main point of this post. Forget high priced private colleges and focus on low cost public colleges for your education. The cost difference is dramatic.

Here are the estimated tuition costs for a child born in 2002 living in Pennsylvania and will enter college in 2020 to purse a 4 year undergraduate degree. These costs were obtained from swz.salary.com/collegetuitionplanner/layoutscripts/cltl_start.asp

Pennsylvania State University - $60,317 (Public)

Lehigh University - $ 204,809 (Private)

That is a difference of $144,492! This large difference between public and private colleges is similar in all states.

At the end of four years each college will give you a piece of paper called a diploma.

Bottom line: Don’t spend any more than you have to to get that piece of paper!

Mike Ragan is the owner of Cash Cow Info, a new site loaded with tips on how to save your hard earned money. His site can be found at http://www.cashcowinfo.com