Is Tuition Insurance Worth the Money?

By Alyssa Laffitte on January 25, 2018

Your college education will be one of the most expensive investments you will ever make. As with any big investment, you should try to protect your investment as much as possible. Insurance is one way you can protect your investment. The same way you protect your car and your house with car and home insurance, you can protect your college tuition with college tuition insurance. Tuition insurance can be expensive, though, and it is not for everyone, so you must carefully weigh your options to decide whether it is worth the money for your specific case.

Is tuition insurance worth the money?

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What is tuition insurance?

Tuition insurance provides reimbursement for tuition and other school-related costs when a student must unexpectedly withdraw from the school. If the student can’t continue their studies, for any reason, they can recuperate some of the money they spent.

Not all tuition insurance plans are the same. Some companies only provide tuition insurance if a student is chronically ill or if they get into an accident. Some companies may only reimburse tuition and not other school-related expenses (like room and board, or books). And of course, the amount that they will reimburse you varies according to which tuition insurance plan you choose.

Because the benefits from each plan vary so widely, I would recommend doing a good amount of research on each plan before you commit to one. You don’t want to realize after you’ve made your first payment that another tuition insurance plan would have been better for you. Research might be time-consuming, but it could save you a lot of money in the end, so do it!

When is tuition insurance worth the cost? The short answer: it usually isn’t.

According to the San Francisco Gate, tuition insurance is generally not worth the cost. The experts in the article say that although tuition insurance will give you peace of mind if anything does happen, it usually doesn’t have a good financial return. So if you are a healthy student, it is usually not worth investing the money in insurance because there is very little chance that you will suddenly have to drop out. However, there are some cases where you should look into your options for tuition insurance. Here they are:

If you are chronically ill

Unfortunately, chronic illnesses can be unpredictable. One day, you feel fine, but you could have a painful flare-up the next day. Sometimes, the flare-ups can be so bad that they cause students to take a semester or two off to recover. You deserve this time off to let yourself recover and come back to school feeling stronger and healthier. However, if you have already paid your tuition for the semesters that you were not at school, you might not be able to get a refund. But if you had tuition insurance, you could be reimbursed for a good portion of that money. If you have an illness, I recommend you look into which tuition insurance plans work for your needs in the event that you need to take a break from school to recover.

If you are attending an expensive university

As I said before, your college education is a big investment, and big investments should be protected. This is especially true if you attend an expensive university. What if you suddenly need to transfer schools? Protecting your investment with tuition insurance is a good idea if you go to a particularly expensive school.

Other options to consider if you don’t want to invest in tuition insurance

If you don’t want to invest in tuition insurance but you are still interested in the peace of mind that comes with protecting your investment, check out any tuition refund options your university might have. Under the right conditions, your school might reimburse a portion of your tuition if you suddenly get sick or get in an accident. Of course, it’s good to know about these things before you need them, so I would recommend finding out this information as soon as possible. If you know you have other options besides expensive tuition insurance, you will feel better about investing so much money in your education.

Clearly, deciding whether to purchase tuition insurance or not is an important decision. Your tuition is a big investment in your future, it’s quite possibly one of the biggest investments you will ever make, so you should take care of it by buying insurance. However, sometimes buying insurance simply isn’t worth it financially, especially if you have a low chance of dropping out. On the other hand, tuition insurance might be important for students who might have to unexpectedly miss a semester or two due to illness. Evaluate your own situation carefully and do your research so you can decide if tuition insurance is worth the money for you.

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