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Tag: Expected Family Contribution (EFC)
College Application or Marriage Proposal?
Applying to college isn’t simple. Metaphorically, choosing a college can be like an arranged marriage—parents are involved in the choosing process, lifelong expectations are being weighted and future prosperity is being forecasted. “Dowries” are paid in the form of tuition, room and board, books etc. Students seek a college that’s the “right fit“, dating…
Tuition Surging at California Public Universities for 2017-18
University of California (UC) and California State University (CSU) students will pay more tuition for the 2017-18 school year. For the first time in six years, both the UC and CSU boards have approved tuition and fee increases. At the same time, Governor Jerry Brown proposes to phase out the state-sponsored Middle Class Scholarship program for students…
FAFSA Changes Release Date
The FAFSA or Free Application for Federal Student Aid, the government form required to apply for financial aid at any U.S. college or university, will be released on October 1, 2016. The October date is a full three months earlier than previous years, when the FAFSA was released on January 1. What the earlier release…
“I Have Student Debt?”
[Sung to the tune of Heigh Ho from Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs] “I owe, I owe, so off to work I go…” Even though I remember singing this refrain in jest, Millennials, the current generation between age 18 – 35 , may not be so light-hearted. According to Bloomberg News in April 2016: A…
The Middle Class Squeeze
In the last several years, our middle class clients are being confronted by flattening incomes and college costs that have risen over 1000%. More and more families are finding themselves not only planning to pay for college when their children are quite young, but asking for more financial assistance when their children are ready to…
Does a Free Lunch Exist?
Here’s how to borrow $127,000 in student loans, only repay $87,000 over twenty years, and have the U.S. Government pick up the tab for the $450,000 still owed at the end of the repayment period. [Notice the quadrupling effect on the total balance owed because of the interest that accrues in the two decade long repayment period?…
Arts and Science Are Not Mutually Exclusive
All too often, science is considered the polar opposite of arts. Dr. Mae Jemison speaks to the intersection of arts and science, given her own experience, as a dancer, doctor, chemical engineer and first African American female astronaut. “Many people,” she wrote, “do not see a connection between science and dance, but I consider them…
Welcome to the New Adulthood
For most of us, moving out of the parental units’ house is the ultimate signifier of adulthood. So, what’s the threshold defining adulthood for the growing numbers of 25 year olds, who live with their parents (even after moving away for college)? Since 2002, parental co-residence rates have only risen: And, in 2012:
Internships: The New Entry Level Job
Go to college. Then, get a job. The old adage may have passed its time. Now, the meme may be more like, “Compete to get into college. Go to college; work unpaid internships every semester starting your freshman year, and each summer take more internships, then, hopefully, you’ll get a job by graduation.” According to a…
The FAFSA PIN is Now the FSA ID
When submitting the FAFSA or Free Application for Federal Student Aid to apply for financial aid at colleges and universities all over the United States, parents and students have needed a PIN number as their electronic signature. Recently, Federal Student Aid has changed the PIN to an FSA ID, which will serve as an electronic…
Student Debt in Seven Charts
Not all student debt is ruinous. However, borrowing can be complex. Loans spend tomorrow’s income today, and for college students, a promise of tomorrow’s income is spent to pay for expenses in the present day. Understanding recent growth in student loans and the challenges of repayment can help potential student loan borrowers consider both the benefits and the risks before borrowing.…
Ahead of the Curve: All About Financing A College Education
Thoughts from the news: Flip Side of Reducing Student Debt Is Increasing the Federal Deficit, New York Times, February 11, 2015—for every benefit, there is a cost Looking At Student Loan Defaults Through a Larger Landscape, Federal Reserve Bank of New York, February 19, 2015—student loan defaults are not only increasing, but also occurring earlier in…
Wait…I Have Student Debt?!?
In a recent survey published by the Brookings Institute, current college students with student debt were unaware of the exact loan amounts, as well as what they’d eventually repay. At $1.2 Trillion and growing daily, total student debt may be more complicated than we, as a society understand. Highlights of the findings are below: At a public four-year…
Living with Mom & Dad?
Is the trend shown in the chart below, caused by the increase in student loans, as seen in the following chart? Charts Courtesy: Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research & Zero Hedge, October 26, 2014