OK..so I might not be the sharpest knife in the drawer these days. I’m okay with that. I do read at a college level…and I can process details pretty quickly.
Recently, my child presents me with a booklet given to her by her school. Inside is a form letter pretty much summarizing the booklet. Thanks. But that was really a waste of school resources which I am PRETTY SURE can be used elsewhere….maybe even covering these fees outlined in this book.
I had NO clue that taking a college level course at a high school meant that you had to pay a separate fee to take the exam…to get college credit. HELLO SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION….it would be nice to educate parents on these things PRIOR to students being registered for these. Actually, it would be NICE if this fee was covered by the school since I have no clue where my “registration/student fee” goes anyway.
Here’s the process that got me to writing this.
- I read the letter in the booklet.
- Important dates, costs and website noted –
- fee is $97 (wait for jaw to close);
- register online (www.TotalRegistration.net);
- registration started Dec 1 (it’s now Jan 13 and I just got this);
- register by Mar 12 midnight or pay $25 late fee (yeah because we all know, it costs $25 more to add names up until Mar 21);
- deadline is Mar 21 midnight
- Opened booklet. Got to page 2 and noticed, fee is $92 (wait! ok..maybe it’s a typo on the school letter, I’ll check online in a bit);
- notice a few things about fees like the College Board provides a $30 reduction per exam for students with financial need;
- schools may also forego the $9 rebate for each fee-reduced exam, making final cost for qualifying students only $53;
- many states use federal and state funding to further reduce exam fees;
- schools may negotiate a higher fee to recover additional proctoring and administration costs (good to know….because none of us should EVER work above and beyond our job descriptions without payment);
So, I venture online. Now, I NEVER go directly to a link they send me because that usually means they don’t want me to see something else or perhaps they feel that it’s saving me some time. Either way, I appreciate the thought, but if I am paying – I am researching. So, I click the first thing I see, “request pricing”. HOLY COW! Brace yourself. I guess our school has negotiated a higher fee. What I read was the following:
“Total Registration’s Exam Registration Services vary from $1.75/exam (IB) down to $0.70/exam (PSAT). The cost decreases as schools register students for more exams. Schools receive additional discounts when multiple district schools use Total Registration or schools use multiple services. On average schools pay less than $1.00/exam for online registration.”
DAAAAANG!!! Read that last line folks. ON AVERAGE schools pay less than $1.00/exam for online registration. WHY IN THE HECK ARE WE BEING CHARGED $97 (or $92) for each exam ???!??!
SO…let’s put together a word problem:
- There’s 30 kids in an AP class; half of them get financial aid…how many pay the $97; how many pay $53? What is the total the school gets from each student?
- 30 students in class– 30/2=15
- 15 pay $97 (15x$97=$1,455)
- 15 pay $53 (15x$53=$795) *note: school foregoes $9 refund for reduced fee students
- $2,250 (fees paid) – $30 (cost for each exam at $1 each) = $2,220 PROFIT
THIS IS FOR ONE CLASS FOLKS!!!! You cannot tell me it costs $2,220 to have a proctor sit in class during the exam??? The $1 per exam I used was a HIGH end cost; which we know they pay less than $1/exam.
YES FOLKS….I smell a big time scam!!!
CLIMB ABOARD MY SOAPBOX 