The cost of college is confusing. Some schools are trying to change that

Many Americans have soured on higher education because of how frustratingly hard it is to figure out what they will pay to attend.

<img src='https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/3500x2333+0+0/resize/3500x2333!/quality/85/format/webp/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fa6%2F75%2Ffa5815984bd689f4061eda069bf1%2Fhe-cost-confusion-4.jpg' alt='An aerial view of the Middlebury College campus in Vermont. Middlebury is among a number of colleges trying to help people decipher how much they actually cost, by guaranteeing free tuition for families with incomes under a particular threshold.'/><p>Many Americans have soured on higher education because of how frustratingly hard it is to figure out what they will pay to attend.</p><p>(Image credit: Oliver Parini for The Hechinger Report)</p><img src='https://media.npr.org/include/images/tracking/npr-rss-pixel.png?story=nx-s1-6023392' />