Strategies for the Ages
Sticker-shock survival: the right moves for families to make
Save painlessly Send day-care money to a 529.
Middle School
Evaluate Get teachers and coaches to honestly assess your child's talents, skills, and performance.
Catch up Provide tutoring or other aid to a student who isn't fulfilling potential.
Boost Encourage--but don't overemphasize--any special talent or interest.
Sophomore Year
Eye AP Prepare for Advanced Placement classes. Enough passing grades might save a year's college tuition.
Start budgeting Try online calculators to estimate your chances for need-based aid.
Move money Those with a chance at aid can better their odds by moving savings out of the child's name. Wealthier parents can make tax-free gifts to the child.
Junior Year
Heart-to-heart Parents should encourage students to aim high but also explain the family's finances and projected college costs.
Ask. They'll tell Ask admissions and aid officers for early guesstimates of aid.
My hero Get an early start on essay contests and other scholarship competitions. Save the materials for reuse in applications.
Sit for the SAT Start prepping for the tests by the end of junior year.
Senior Year
Don't give up Fill out the FAFSA and, if necessary, the Profile. Even families with six-figure incomes are now getting aid at some schools.
Apply strategically Don't just apply early to your dream school. Apply to a few schools for which you are the dream student.
Compare apples Calculate your true out-of-pocket costs for each aid offer. Loans are not free money. And scholarships with fancy names may blind you to a better offer elsewhere.
Get more help online
More about paying for college, including the top 10 financial aid mistakes parents and students should avoid, can be found at www.usnews.com/education . You can also narrow your school search with our annual college rankings.
Breaking the Burden Into Thirds
Paying for college is difficult but can be done. Here is one strategy to cover expected tuition, fees, room and board, and expenses at a public, four-year school.
Likely cost of degree for a baby born in 2005* (in today's dollars)
Sticker Price $91,742
After-Aid** Cost $64,963
From Savings. Estimated savings per month needed to amass this amount in 18 years assuming a 4 percent return above inflation
Sticker Price $30,581
After-Aid** Cost $21,654
Monthly savings for 18 years
Sticker Price $150
After-Aid** Cost $105
From Family Income. Amount the family could try to pay out of current income each year the student is in college
Sticker Price $6,116
After-Aid** Cost $4,331
Monthly cost for 5 years of college
Sticker Price $510
After-Aid** Cost $361
From Student Loans. Estimated debt upon graduation if the money is borrowed through an unsubsidized Stafford loan at 6 percent interest
Sticker Price $36,109
After-Aid** Cost $25,569
Monthly repayment for 10 years
Sticker Price $401
After-Aid** Cost $284
*Assumes five years to graduate, since only about 40 percent of public-university students now finish in four years.
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