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Eric Tyson. Paying For College For Dummies
Saving and Schooling Options: Tips to Guide You through College Decisions
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Paying For College For Dummies® To view this book's Cheat Sheet, simply go to www.dummies.com and search for “Paying For College For Dummies Cheat Sheet” in the Search box. Table of Contents
List of Tables
List of Illustrations
Guide
Pages
Introduction
About This Book
Foolish Assumptions
Icons Used in This Book
Beyond This Book
Where to Go from Here
Understanding Paying for College
Confronting High College Prices and the Modern Job Market
Confronting the High Prices of Higher Education
A brief historical overview of colleges and who completes it
Don’t college grads make more money?
SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE WHO NEVER GOT A COLLEGE DEGREE
Mushrooming student debt and its underlying causes
Looking at How College Pricing Works
How colleges see you
Saving now and later
Somebody give me some money!
Employment Reality and What Students Say They Want from College
What students actually do in college
Hiring and jobs
Looking at How the Higher Education Landscape is Changing
College enrollment is declining
Some colleges are failing and closing
Colleges are under pressure to contain their prices
Lower cost and faster alternatives to colleges are growing
Bottom line is good for you, the college and higher education consumer
Financial Planning Steps When Your Kids are Young
Kids Are Costly! Getting Your Finances in Order
Building the pillars of personal finance
Developing and hitting savings goals
Finding Saving Methods Given How College Financial Aid Works
What financial aid penalizes
Recognizing that financial aid rules change
Spending on Your Kids without Breaking the Bank
Setting limits, guidelines, and goals with your spouse
Setting limits with your kids
Keeping Spending in Line: Using Youth Sports as an Example
Focusing on the lifelong benefits of sports
Being mindful of expenses and set budgets
Being aware of the agendas of “professional” (also known as paid) coaches
Realizing good parents can make good coaches
Letting kids simply play — the value of pick-up games
Understanding the increased risk of overuse and serious injuries
Discovering the facts about scholarships
Considering the opportunity cost of sports’ time and expenses
Being wary of the winning addiction
Completing the Personal Finance Olympics of Childrearing
Exposing Your Kids to Work, Finances, and the “Real World”
Laying the Foundation for Raising Money-Smart Kids in the Early Years
Educating when shopping
Taking your kid to work
Dealing with What Kids Are Exposed To
Looking at the effects of advertising
CREDIT CARDS AND COLLEGE STUDENTS
Understanding habit development and setting limits
Developing the Work-Money Connection
Regarding allowances and chores
Deciding on amounts
Picking tasks
Putting money away
Helping with purchases
Encouraging work outside your home as they get older
Teaching Your Kids About More Real-World Money Topics
Being mindful of your statements and attitudes about money
Don’t buy them a car!
THE FACTS ON TEENAGER DRIVING DANGERS
Introducing the right and wrong ways to use credit and debit cards
Talking to kids about investing
Finding Acceptance
Making the Most of Your Kid’s Academic and Outside Experiences
Understanding the Value of Academic Success (Good Grades)
Jumping Through Hoops: Marketing of High School Students
Quality over quantity
’Focusing on interests and passions
Helping your teenagers forge their own academic path
Playing sports
Getting work experience
Volunteering
Guiding Your Child
Agreeing to a Process for Making Decisions
Conducting the Right Research
Working with and Hiring “Experts”
Interacting with teachers
Employing tutors
PARENTAL CHALLENGES AND BEING INVOLVED
Utilizing school/guidance counselors
Working with a college planning service
HOW HIGH SCHOOL COUNSELORS AND ADMINISTRATORS REACT TO PRIVATE COLLEGE COUNSELORS
Hiring financial advisors
Getting assistance with financial aid forms
Dealing with Mental Health Issues
Confronting College Costs: Traditional Colleges and Alternatives
Seeing How Traditional Colleges Decide What to Charge You
Taking All Your (Financial) Clothes OFF!
Understanding commonly requested information
Coming to terms with supplemental information requests
Valuing Wanting One Another
Checking on Realities for Recruited Athletes
Looking at the probability of competing in college athletics
Deciding on the likelihood of competing in professional sports
Figuring out how college athletic scholarships work
Full versus partial scholarships
Dealing with recruited athlete offers
Understanding the realities of athletic scholarship offers
Surveying the Range of College Options
Considering Four-Year Colleges
Understanding a liberal arts education and alternatives
Examining what a liberal arts education can include
Knowing when liberal arts may not fit
Finding where the job openings will be
Creating your own business education
Evaluating the career placement prospects at different colleges
Using college rankings and ratings for finding the right match
Forbes: America’s Top Colleges
Kiplinger: Best Value Colleges
Understanding the political climate on college campuses
Deciding if traditional four-year college is the right choice
Learning and Serving in the Military
Benefits and required commitments
Why it’s not for most teenagers/young adults
Admissions process and requirements
Considering Community Colleges
Taking a Year Post–High School to Work or Volunteer
Working for a living (temporarily)
Volunteering/travel programs overseas
Taking a post-grad year at a boarding/prep school
Is College Necessary or the Best Option for Your Children?
The Best College Alternatives to Consider
Looking at Last-Mile Programs
Staying at boot camps
Considering college minimal viable products (MVPs)
Appealing to apprenticeships
Joining staffing firms
Getting Oriented with Online Programs
Finding Out about Vocational/Trade Schools
ARE COLLEGE ALTERNATIVES PREPPING YOUNG ADULTS FOR THE LONG TERM?
Final Thoughts on Alternatives to Traditional Colleges
College cooperative educational experiences
Where to go for more information on alternatives to college
Getting the Best Education at the Best Price
Financial Steps You Should Take While Your Kids Grow Up
Determining a College Financial Aid Package
Figuring the expected family contribution
Looking at income
Figuring in assets
Calculating the EFC
Understanding the financial aid package components
Looking into Long-Term Saving and Investing Strategies
Financial aid treatment of retirement accounts
Financial aid treatment of money in the kids’ names
529 state-sponsored college savings plans
What works with a 529 plan
What doesn’t work with 529 plans
Researching 529 plans
SHUN PREPAID TUITION PLANS
Coverdell education savings accounts
Investing strategies and vehicles
Strategizing to Pay for Educational Expenses
Estimating college costs
Setting realistic savings goals
Determining Later-Year Savings Tactics
Filling Out the Common Financial Aid Forms to Your Best Advantage
Determining Whether to Apply for Financial Aid
Should your family apply for financial aid?
Using the “net price calculator” to estimate costs
Knowing if financial aid harms your chances for admission
Meeting deadlines
Taking an Overview of Financial Aid Forms
Filling Out the FAFSA® Form: Free Application for Federal Student Aid
Completing the FAFSA® form online versus on paper
Sending your FAFSA® form to more than the “allowed” number of colleges
Understanding and dealing with a Federal Student Aid (FSA) ID
Student is applying for aid
Selective service registration
Interested in work-study consideration?
Federal income tax return questions
Income earned from work
Value of your assets
Number of college students in household
HOW OWNING A HOME MAY AFFECT YOUR CHILDREN’S QUALIFYING FOR COLLEGE FINANCIAL AID
Getting on Board with the CSS Profile Form
Parent details
Current and future year income
Household information
Parent assets
Parent expenses
Checking Off School-Specific Forms
Tricks and Tips for Finding Scholarships and Borrowing Money
Gaining Grants and Scholarships
College and university grants and scholarships
Federal and state government grants
“Outside” grants and scholarships
Looking at larger award sources first
Enlisting scholarship search websites
Searching for small dollars locally
Borrowing for College
Tapping assets versus borrowing
Borrowing against your home equity and other assets
Borrowing against cash value life insurance balances
Using federal government loan programs
ENLISTING YOUR KID’S HELP
Reviewing Financial Aid Offers and Appealing Them
Getting Word on College Acceptances and Doing More Research
Open house/Acceptance day
Overnight visits
Talk to more people!
(Really) review the course catalog and majors
Taking a Long, Hard Look at the Bottom-Line Price
Asking for a better price
Reviewing the admission and financial aid offers
Asking for more when you have just one offer
Dealing with multiple offers
The Part of Tens
(Almost) Ten Education Tax Breaks and Rules You Should Know About
Contributing to Retirement Accounts
Checking to See if You Qualify for the Saver’s Tax Credit
Understanding the Tax Benefits of 529 Plans
Considering Coverdell Education Savings Accounts (ESAs)
Utilizing the American Opportunity Tax Credit
Taking Advantage of the Lifetime Learning Credit
Understanding the Retirement Account Withdrawal Penalty Waiver
Finishing on Time without High Income Earning Years
Taking the Student Loan Interest Deduction
Ten Tips for Getting Your College Degree Quicker
Communicating Is Key
Keeping All Your Options Open
Planning Ahead Financially
Picking Colleges with High Graduation Rates
Selecting Colleges that Offer Your Desired Courses and Majors
Choosing Schools with Affordable Housing
Getting College Credit in High School
Making Use of Advisors and Deans
Having Students Work during College
Avoiding Stopping School to Work
Ten Important Money Management Steps for Young Adults
Getting Financially Fit, Now!
Adapting and Adjusting Along the Way
Cancelling Consumer Credit
Reviewing Your Budget and Spending Plans
Striving to Regularly Save and Invest
Ensuring that You’re Properly Insured
Continuing Your Education
Always Being Prepared for a Job Change
Evaluating the Total Cost of Relocating
Ensuring Compatibility when Picking a Partner
Ten Things to Know About Student Loans
Keeping Track of Your Loans
Understanding What Cosigners Means for Responsibility
Knowing the Loan Terms
Using the Auto-Pay Feature to Save Money
Understanding Loan Forgiveness Conditions
Knowing Your Federal Loan Repayment Options
Cautiously Considering Refinance Possibilities
Asking for Relief
Making Use of the Student Loan Interest Deduction
Pausing Your Loans with a Return to Higher Education
Index. A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
Y
Z
About the Author
Author’s Acknowledgments
WILEY END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT
