I had 5 kids headed to college. I took a demotion so they could go tuition-free.
A mother shares her decision to accept a career demotion to secure tuition benefits at a college for her five children. This strategic move allowed her family to avoid significant student debt.
Why it matters
It illustrates the extreme measures families take to navigate the rising costs of higher education in the United States.
The author took a demotion for the tuition benefit. Courtesy of Melania Murphy My husband and I blended a family of six kids. Five of them were nearing college at the same time. To make tuition affordable, I took a lower-paying job at a college with tuition benefits. I spent years questioning whether I had given up too much, but the decision changed all our futures. I recently took a career demotion , but not because I lacked ambition. I made this choice because five of our kids were headed to college, and the math was impossible to ignore. When my husband and I married, we blended a family of six children in a western suburb of Chicago. Five were in high school at the same time — two seniors, a junior, a sophomore, and a freshman. We were thrilled to have a big family .
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