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Applying Early

Early decision and early action plans have become popular options for college applicants. Find out if these plans make sense for your child.

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Be sure to calculate what the college will be expecting of you in the way of direct payment for tuition, fees, room, and board after your package has been taken into account.
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Lynn Nichelson, Director of Financial Aid, Illinois Wesleyan University

Paying for College Is a Partnership

Your family doesn’t have to bear the whole cost of a college education yourselves. Paying for college is a partnership, and this partnership includes your family, the government, the school your child selects, and private businesses and organizations.

At the heart of this partnership is your family, which includes you, your child, and any other relatives who are willing to help out, such as grandparents. Help can also come from the government at the federal, state, and local levels. The federal government is actually the largest financial aid provider. In addition, you can look to the college or university your child decides to attend for scholarships and work-study opportunities. Finally, private businesses, such as banks, provide educational loans, and local community groups often offer scholarships to deserving students.

How Can We Fund Our Child’s Education?

Many students work together with all these partners to pay for college. Below you’ll find a number of ways your family can fund your child’s education.

Use past income: Remember all that birthday money your child has been putting in the bank? Well, now is the time to withdraw it. In addition to counting on your child’s own money, your family might have set up special accounts, such as a 529 savings plan, to help pay for college tuition and other costs. There might be a Coverdell Education Savings Account with your child’s name on it. Your family can get more information on savings plans in Your Saving Options.

Use current income: Tell your child to forget about bumming around at the mall. Summer provides a great opportunity for your child to work, and while living at home, every penny earned can be put toward your child’s education. Babysitting, serving food, mowing lawns, or doing data entry are all good ways to add to your child’s college fund. Some high school students can also handle working during the school year. In addition, you, as parents, may be able to put aside a little money each month to help out. You can even take advantage of College Tuition Tax Credits once your child is in college.

Use future income: Future income is money your child can access while in school, in the form of loans that don’t have to be paid back until later. Various loans are available for students and parents. Learn more about this in Your Family’s Loan Options. Students can begin the application process for loans by completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). For more information on this, check out How to Complete the FAFSA. Your child also has the option of taking out a private loan through banks or other organizations. If you own a home, you may even be willing to take out a home-equity loan to help pay for college costs, borrowing money based on the increased value of your house.

Control costs: Time is money; the longer it takes to complete your child’s education, the more it will probably cost. Your child might be able to graduate early by earning college credit through the College Board’s Advanced Placement Program® (AP®) or College-Level Examination Program® (CLEP®). Another way to save is to pay less per credit. Typically, community colleges offer courses at a lower per-credit price than four-year colleges do. You child might consider attending a community college and then transferring to a four-year school to earn a bachelor’s degree. Taking a heavier course load can also help fulfill requirements more quickly, often at no additional cost. If your child thinks graduate or professional school is in the future, look into accelerated joint-degree programs, which enable your child to earn undergraduate and graduate degrees in less time than if enrolled in each program separately.

Get someone else to pay for your child: There are many grants and scholarships out there that can help your child meet college costs. Learn how to find appropriate scholarships in Where the Scholarships Are. A Pell Grant is one type of financial assistance that your child is not required to repay. Read What Exactly Is a Pell Grant? to find out more. Another source of funding can come from civic organizations—such as the Boy Scouts of America, Girl Scouts of the U.S.A., or 4-H—which often offer scholarships to deserving students. Additional aid can come from campus-based programs, such as Federal Perkins Loans, work-study opportunities, or Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants.  

Service organizations can help your child cut costs by offering monetary awards that can be used to pay for educational expenses or to pay off student loans. In return, your child must promise to work for the organization. Here are a few examples of service organizations:

Where Do We Start?

You can get a good overview of financial aid by using College Board’s Financial Aid EasyPlanner. Then, talk with your child’s school guidance counselor, who will help you explore your options. You can also visit the U.S. Department of Education website to find out more about federal student aid.