I think this is great advice for people that are looking to save some money, but I think it misses the most important part of college. For me, that was the entire experience - living away from home, being on my own, meeting people from all over the country and the world, experiencing a new place...that wouldn't have happened if I had looked for the cheapest way out.

I'm currently in Grad School at UMass Boston, and I'm doing that for the cost factor. I firmly believe that you can get a good education almost anywhere and I don't think it's at all necessary for me to spend $40k/year for a master's in education. BUT, I wouldn't trade my undergrad experience for the world - even though my degree was essentially useless (Art History) the rest of Tulane was amazing. I do wish that I had gotten more involved in on campus activities and organizations, but even without that, just the experience of living in New Orleans with a bunch of other people was fabulous.

It's also important to point out that at the time Tulane went for about $30k/year - not cheap - and UMass went for about $11k/year but when all was said and done UMass wanted me to pay $9k/year cash (with $2k in loans) vs. $5k/year cash with $5k in loans for Tulane. I came out $20k in debt - but the cost was essentially the same and the initial out of pocket expense was significantly cheaper in New Orleans. And I got to live in New Orleans instead of Amherst in the snow.

So, have a plan, but definitely apply to a variety of schools in a variety of places and find the one that fits. If you're just going for the piece of paper, by all means, do it the quickest and cheapest way you can - but remember that's not all there is to a college experience.