Today – How to Help Your Child Pay for College
How to Help Your Child Pay for College
A university degree is so expensive now that you want to look at all the options when it comes to helping your child fund their education. If you can, you should save your money and place it in a college savings account so it can grow. There are many such accounts where you can get federal tax benefits from the government. However, there are also several other ways to help your child get through school.
Apply for Loans
If you’ve looked at all the other options of getting money for school but still don’t have enough, you might want to look into co-signing on a student loan. Anyone with a good credit history can do this, so you aren’t just limited to your own child. You can co-sign for a grandchild, nephew, or a friend. You should have a steady income and good credit history. By co-signing on a loan, you can give your student the education they deserve. It gives your child access to funds they otherwise wouldn’t have. It also helps your student to build credit, something that’ll be important when getting a car or house later.
Look for Scholarships
Look for ways of getting others to pay for your child’s degree. You can find scholarships for all types of degree fields. Some are based on merit while others help athletes get through school. You can also find funds for students in different fields, including pediatrics, performing arts, and engineering. Not all of them judge based on your income. Many nonprofit groups offer these to students. You can likely find several by doing online searches. Sometimes, your child only has to fill out a short application or write an essay. In other cases, however, a scholarship will be more demanding. For example, a student might have to maintain a certain GPA.
Applying for Grants
A grant is similar to a scholarship. You’re more likely to get a grant if you have financial need. If you already have resources to help you pay for your child’s education, it’ll be much more difficult to meet the requirements to help with expenses. Both state and federal programs, as well as schools, offer grants. Sometimes, a grant is aimed at students in certain groups like minorities or low-income homes. Others are more general, meaning more people might qualify for them. If you think your income level makes you qualify, it’s worth doing some research to find them.
Research Work-Study Programs
These programs can help your student apply their newly-learned skills to a real environment. That gives them valuable experience that can help them get a better job after graduation. With the Federal Work-Study Program, your undergraduate or graduate student can get a part-time job during the school year. The funds from work-study jobs don’t count against you when it comes to financial aid. That way, students can still retain needs-based aid from the school. Unfortunately, many work-study jobs are limited, so it’s a good idea to start looking into them early. Families will also need to meet certain requirements to be eligible.
How to Help Your Child Pay for College is a feature post
