Cutting College Costs
by Candace Bahr, CEA, CDFA and Ginita Wall, CPA, CFPreg;
www.WIFE.org
www.MoneyClubs.com
If you have children, chances are that providing a college education for them is high on your list of goals. With the cost of tuition, fees, and room and board for four year at a private university averaging $108,000 and state school costs averaging $42,000 for four years, it#146;s no wonder parents are in a cold sweat.
Those figures can really hurt your pocket book. At this point, you might be saying, #147;Why bother? I#146;ll never be able to save enough.#148; But ignoring the problem won#146;t make it go away. There are lots of ways you can conquer the education cost woes.
Here are a few:
There is $100 billion of financial aid distributed to students in the form of loans, scholarships and grants each year. Be sure you get your share. Many scholarships are not based on need. For example, merit, athletic, and music scholarships are often available to students who excel in those areas.
Apply to a variety of colleges. Aid packages can vary significantly from school to school.
Negotiate. If you are not satisfied with the aid package a school offers, talk to the university.
Start your child at a community college. Two-year colleges are a lot cheaper than four-year universities, especially since most students live at home while attending. First, however, your child should determine which four-year college he/she will transfer to and make sure that all credits from the community college are transferable to the four-year college.
Encourage your child to accelerate his/her studies by taking some summer classes or extra credits throughout the year. It#146;s possible to finish a four-year degree in three years. That means considerable savings for you.
Take advantage of the latest tax breaks. The Hope Credit gives you a 100% tax credit for $1,000 of tuition and fees for junior#146;s first year of college, and 50% of $1,000 for the second year. The Lifetime Learning Credit gives you a 20% credit of up to $10,000 of tuition for you or your child. There are income limitations, so be sure to check with your tax advisor to see if you qualify.
The best thing to do is plan ahead. Remember, with financial aid and scholarships, and plain old working-your-way-through-college, the costs don#146;t have to bury you.
Cofounders sixteen years ago of the nonprofit Women#146;s Institute for Financial Education (
www.WIFE.org
) and the new MoneyClub for women (
www.MoneyClubs.com
), Candace Bahr, CEA, CDFA and Ginita Wall, CPA, CFPreg; are trusted financial guides for millions of women. As owner of her own investment management firm, Candace was recently recognized as one of the top ten brokers in the country for 2003 by Registered Rep magazine. Ginita has been named to Worth magazine#146;s Top Financial Advisors for seven years. Both authors are nationally-recognized experts on women and money and regularly appear on CNN and CNBC and in national financial and women#146;s publications. This article is excerpted from their new book
It#146;s More Than Money#151;It#146;s Your Life! The New Money Club for Women
(John Wiley, 2004). Permission granted for use on DrLaura.com.
