So Money episode 1952, how colleges quietly discount tuition and what families need to know.

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Once you get in, the offer of admission usually includes what's known as an award letter,

which is basically just a pricing sheet telling you what they expect you to pay.

And it is often the case that these institutions will make a first offer that is not the final offer. And if you happen to come

from a community where their data suggests that lots of people have been willing to pay the

full price in the past, they may lowball you on purpose. And so there is room after you get that first offer

to ask for more, but you've got to do it in the right way. Welcome to So Money, everybody.

I'm Farnoush Tarabi. We're talking about the cost of college today, a phrase I often hear

for my friends with college-bound kids, Farnuge, all schools cost

a hundred grand a year now. And yeah, if you're scrolling through the sticker prices of

certain elite schools, it can feel that way. The numbers are eye-watering. Four years at some

colleges can approach $400,000. But here is the truth. That sticker price is often not

the real price. In fact, what many families don't realize is that the college pricing system in America

is less like shopping for a product and more like navigating a complicated marketplace that's

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