What Do You Mean by 'What Does a College Degree Cost?'

If you want to know how much needs to be spent by "someone" to get a degree, $40,000 may be the answer. A recent Delta Study report says that answer also depends on how you perceive the role of colleges.

This link is to an Inside Higher Ed report by Doug Lederman:
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/05/19/degree

"The paper shows that it is distinctly possible to come up with such a figure, but the wide variation in the numbers -- based on institution type, program, degree level, and other factors -- suggests that the answer will depend in large part on how the question is framed. And that decision is a surprisingly value-laden one, says Johnson. "You frame the question one way if you are only interested in students who graduate, and another way if you want to know the cost for people who go to college and don't complete," he says. "The point is, this is not just a data question. It's a question of what it is that we want from our colleges and universities."

This link is to the Delta Study report on degree costs (PDF):
http://www.deltacostproject.org/resources/pdf/johnson3-09_WP.pdf