Worries about paying for rising college costs can be compounded by concerns over saving for retirement. As seen in the chart below, with average retirement savings of people aged 45-54, the general age range of parents with college-aged children, at $10,100, can explain parents’ concerns. The Baby Boomer group just ahead in age (55-64)…
Tag: Future
Letting Go: College Move In Day Approaches
For parents anxiously facing their soon-to-be-college freshman’s move away from home… ‘ Photo Credit: The New Yorker Magazine, August 2012
College Admissions & Financial Aid 101: The Expanded Edition
After facilitating a lively Brown Bag Lunch discussion at Hewlett Packard in Roseville, CA called, “College Admissions & Financial Aid 101”, I wanted to l expand on a few answers, as well as offer additional tips for families: About the information college’s review in applications during admissions decision making: The four main areas of…
The Worth of Wealth
What is wealth? The Urban Institute recently reported that the average net worth of today’s 29 to 37 year old has fallen 21% in comparison with previous generations since 1983. On the surface, this idea of “less wealth” may seem like a bad thing, as generally, I don’t like to be “less” at anything. However,…
3…2…1…Liftoff! Launching the Class of 2013
Commencements can be bittersweet moments–a celebration of accomplishments, while simultaneously a doorway into a new unknown. The following are words of wisdom from graduation festivities around the United States, as the Class of 2013 enters the world with new knowledge and greater experience. And, for posterity, I added my two cents. President Barak Obama, Morehouse University:…
Choosing Harvard: Thoughts About a “Prestigious” University
As Juniors and their families begin sizing up prospective colleges for application and weighing the value of a college’s reputation, I thought I’d share I came to be a Harvard graduate, along with thoughts about a recent New York Times article, Measuring College Prestige vs. Cost of Enrollment. Quotes from the New York Times article will…
More 25 Year Olds Have Student Debt…And At Higher Average Amounts
As seen in the chart below, the red line indicates that the portion of 25-year olds with student debt has grown from 25% in 2003 to 43% in 2012–meaning an increasing portion of young adults are choosing to “bring forward” expected future earnings to pay for a college degree. Furthermore, the black line on the chart…
What’s The Value of a University of California Education?
Roughly 30 percent of every dollar we take in from tuition we reinvest back in financial aid. So the nominal tuition is $12,000 but the real tuition is probably about $8500. It’s like the sticker price on an automobile: 62 percent of our students don’t pay the sticker price, [which is] income adjusted. But it’s…
Purposeful Failure
“I have not failed. I have just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” Thomas Edison I am the anti-Thomas Edison. I fear making mistakes. I fear mistakes will expose me to others’ (mis-)judgements, like being seen as stupid. I’ve evolved into a cautious reactor, preferring to watch others from the sidelines go first, make my…
“Study Abroad” May Not Mean What You Think
“Study abroad” in college can have multiple definitions. Not every student will immerse themselves for a year at a foreign university, studying concepts in a foreign language. Universities are expanding the range of opportunities to travel and study abroad, as well as varying the duration of programs. Summers, spring breaks, semesters-long, month long trips between…
Guest Post: The Savings for College Challenge, Part 4 – Saving for College vs. Saving for Retirement
About the authors: For over 25 years, Cynthia S. Meyers, CFP®, MBA, has assisted people with their Lifetime Financial Planning–helping to build and preserve wealth in every area of life. Jenny Hood, CFP® has been a paraplanner with Cynthia S. Meyers for five years and enjoys being a part of the financial planning process. ____________________________________…
Wrapping Your Arms Around College Costs
Parents often remark that they don’t want money to define their child’s choices for college, and then proceed to ask me questions about financial aid and scholarships. The sense of an impending expense in the thousands of dollars can make any normal human being nervous. Teens can often react with guilt and fear, that they…
“Open Your Eyes!”
“Open your eyes!” This is a command I’ve heard jokingly, and literally, for a long time, since I am a typical Asian with eyes that crinkle and appear closed when I laugh or smile, even while they’re open. Recently, a student reminded me the importance of opening my eyes, in a figurative sense, about how…
No Free Lunch: A Student Loan Borrower’s Tale
My student loans were just paid-off this year–13 years after I first assumed them**. I originally borrowed $18,500 to pay for graduate school, plus a $740 loan origination fee. I ended up repaying about $29,500, which includes interest and principal–approximately $10,260 was paid in interest alone. I’m not particularly attentive to my expenses or money…
College Application Deadlines Making You Want to Scream?
Surviving the college application can test the patience and self-interests and emotional stamina and gumption and understanding and willingness of parents, as much as the Senior. Sometimes, of everyone in the family all at once. As a result, parents may find themselves thinking up choice names for Senior teachers over the past month and into December, as…