Financial Aid
Other Sources of Aid

This information is provided to assist students and parents in their exploration of other sources of aid.  Most of this information was provided by Mark Kantrowitz and is found on the Financial Aid Information Page (www.finaid.org).

Savings for College

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the tuition component of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) increased by 8% per year, on average, from 1979 to 2001.  This means that children born today will face college costs that are 3 to 4 times current prices by the time they matriculate.

Parents should expect to pay at least half to two-thirds of their childrens college through a combination of savings, current income, and loans.  Gift aid from the government, the colleges and universities, and private scholarships accounts for only about a third of total college costs.

 Accordingly, it is very important that parents start saving for their childrens education as soon as possible, even as early as the day the child is born.  Time is one of your most valuable assets.  The sooner you start saving for college, the more time your money will have time to grow.

If you start saving early enough, even a modest weekly or monthly investment can grow to a significant college fund by the time the child matriculates.  For example, saving $50 a month from birth would yield about $20,000 by the time the child turns 17, assuming a 7% return on investment.  Saving $200 a month would yield almost $80,000.

• US Treasury Savings Bonds
• Coverdell Education Savings Accounts
• Money from your Retirement Plan
• Variable Life Insurance Policies
• Home Equity Line of Credit

• Corporation for National Service
• President's  Student Service Scholarships