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Paying for College
Although you may not be sure how you got here, you suddenly find yourself sitting in a metal folding chair watching your little bundle of joy stand on a stage proudly wearing cap and gown and beaming with pride.
If you’re like many of the other families in the audience who have also gotten to this point without that fully funded college nest egg in hand…don’t worry. There’s lots of hope.
- Follow the Free Money: Scholarships, Grants and Discounts: Before you panic, make sure you’ve exhausted every possible avenue for scholarships, grants and tuition discounts. Even if you’re pretty sure you don’t qualify for anything. Many universities offer discounts on tuition for special circumstances and there are also many obscure scholarships that your child may qualify for. Check with your school of choice and ask for special financial aid opportunities.
- Crack Open the Piggy Bank: This is the one we already know about, when in doubt, dig deeper in your pockets. This is definitely a viable route, but you’re probably here because the piggy bank went dry.
- Tack it on to the Family Budget: Some families might be able to meet educational expenses by allocating funds from their current budget. Because your child is no longer living at home and you’re not paying for those high school related expenses, you might be able to take some of that money and apply it to your college budget.
- Get a job: It may sound a little harsh initially, but there’s nothing wrong with asking your pride and joy to plan to work during school to help offset certain expenses, especially books, supplies and spending money.
- Borrow the Balance: There are many different loan options available to the college bound family today.
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