Choosing a college based on price or which campus offers the greatest amount of financial aid can seem like a foreign concept to many families. However, as tuition continues rising annually and parents face the quandary of balancing saving for retirement and paying for college, at the same time their income seems to be shrinking, families may be facing increasing pressure to consider the price of a college education, thus determine the value of a college degree given the individual needs of each of their children. Approaching decisions about college like other consumer purchases, as we reported in an earlier post, can provoke feelings of guilt that parents are limiting their children’s choices for a future education–especially when parents often expect to pay the majority, if not the entirety of college costs for each of their children. Similarly, students can feel frustrated that their multi-years of effort to achieve may not be justly rewarded, with the best college for their merits, not the best college for their family’s pocketbook. The emotions around college decisions and talking about finances can make for complicated conversations. Creating an on-going dialogue may be one way to build a consensus about college where both parents and the college-bound child can agree. In addition, to give families one example of determining the value of college, Julie, Partner of Creative Marbles Consultancy, shares her experience in the following podcast.
For further guidance to help define the value of college to be able to select colleges that fit students’ needs and the family pocketbook, or an objective moderator for complicated conversations about family finances and education, contact Creative Marbles Consultancy at [email protected] or (916) 457-4090.
