Higher education has been positioned as key to generating respect, success, and wealth — especially for young Black people. My whole life I was encouraged to pursue higher education for these reasons, but with minimal help of how to understand all the financial aspects of college I learned the cost of higher education is more than just paying tuition. The first time I struggled to navigate university fees was when my unpaid parking tickets stopped me from registering for classes. I owed $350 and it took me a month and a half of putting all my extra money towards this bill to register for classes. And while I was fortunate enough to pay it, some of my friends in similar situations were not and were forced to pause school and start working full time to pay their student bills in hopes of coming back.