When getting a degree is seen as a moral obligation, families will spend whatever it takes. Everyone knows that higher education is expensive. The average annual price tag for attending a private, four-year American college is now around $50,000. To pay that, most students receive some combination of financial aid and loans, but schools expect Read More

Kristy Epperson, now a 23-year-old nurse, was $20,000 in debt when she graduated from college in 2017. “I am a first-generation college student so my parents weren’t really able to offer me guidance,” she told “Good Morning America.” “To me it just seemed like the natural process was to go to college and rack up Read More

Early in my career as an investment banker to colleges and universities, I sat in on meetings with CFOs and Treasurers of hundreds of institutions. I learned tuition rates are not based on the services provided to students, nor the affordability for students or parents. In large, senior management simply analyzed their peer groups, and Read More

A new study sheds light on how the complicated design of student-aid programs affects borrowing decisions As the student-loan debt bubble grows, lawmakers and consumer advocates are pushing for better counseling to help students make better-informed borrowing decisions. But as a new working paper circulated Monday by the National Bureau of Economic Research shows, counseling Read More

For students seeking federal financial aid to pay for college, the deadline to submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, is on June 30 each year. But to maximize their chances of getting aid, every prospective and current college student would ideally promptly submit the FAFSA shortly after the application opens on Read More

What’s happening: The rising cost of education and the increasing necessity of a college degree in many professions have led to an explosion in student loan debt in the U.S. Americans now owe $1.56 trillion — a figure some experts have called a “crisis” for the economy. Many 2020 Democratic presidential candidates have proposed measures to alleviate the financial burdens that Read More

Parent PLUS Loans have always been an expensive option for financing a child’s college education. They come with an interest rate that is higher that many private loans and an origination fee of over 4 percent for every new loan. But thanks to rules that went into effect more than 10 years ago, they also Read More

Discover Student Loans recently conducted a national online survey of 2,015 students, former students and parents in the United States. Almost one-third (31 percent) of parents with students currently in school or recently graduated say they may have to work longer or retire later due to helping pay for their child’s college education. The survey Read More

How do you appeal a financial aid letter? Should you appeal a financial aid award? What kind of college awards can you appeal? I directed these financial aid questions to Mark Kantrowitz, a nationally recognized financial aid expert, who has just published a book entitled, How to Appeal for More Financial Aid Awards. Mark is Read More

It is estimated that 70% of college students are stressed about their personal finances. OneClass has created a free and intuitive college budget template that gives real-time advice based on spending habits. It’s very easy to use. Here is a link to the Excel template: College Student Budget Template Students just need to add in basic Read More