Want to build your financial plan for college? My new College Financial Plan Masterclass puts you in charge of your college selection and funding process. You’ll learn how the system works so you can save money, make better decisions, and partner with your student to get them not just a great education, but a great college experience. This interactive course…
I’m changing topic today because my friend Jon said something on Sunday that I can’t get out of my head and I think all parents of teens and young adults need to hear: “We want our kids to be happy. We want our kids to be successful. But most of all we want them to be here.” We spent Sunday…
Savings creates choices. When it comes to college, more savings means more choices: if you can spend $25,000 annually from savings for four years, your student will have a wider range of choices than if you can only spend $10,000 annually from savings. You’ll have good choices at both of those price points, but students with more savings will (almost…
As a high school guidance counselor, John McMichael has a lot of conversations with students about borrowing for college. That’s in no small part because about two decades into his career, he’s still paying off his own student loans. His experience with student loans is instructive: how not planning for college costs led to borrowing, graduate school’s impact on his…
Parents often ask what options their student has for loans that don’t require a co-signer. The answer: very few other than federal direct student loans. A quick review: undergraduate education loans come in three broad types: Direct student loans: These are federal loans for undergraduate students, with an annual borrowing limit ranging from $5,500 for first-year students to $7,500 for…
