HIGHER Education: Do your “homework” and analyze the numbers, then price the appropriate student program to the affordable campus!
“Student loan debt amassed by parents is growing faster actually than loans taken out by the student. Parents’ loan debt has more than doubled over the past decade exceeding $100 billion. That’s 10% of all student loan debt, and that’s according to Fastweb.com and Finaid.org.” – reports CNBC‘s Sharon Epperson.
“Parents of every income level are increasingly borrowing for their children’s college educations,” says Fastweb.com & Finaid.org publisher Mark Kantrowitz.
Whatever your particular situation, do your homework, research your options: scholarships, grants, and other financing programs available at little or no cost. The sooner the student gets involved in this total process of securing financing, the less money that will have to be borrowed.
Start that total process while the student is in junior high school, or even earlier, to guide them on the right scholastic, employment, volunteering path and help them establish a regimen and discipline that will aid in their qualification and opportunities for scholarships and grants – available both locally, as well as through the state, the schools, the trades, and the campus of their choice.
Do not be drawn in by the ivy-league-ness of a campus; find the right fit for the student’s area of interest … especially regarding the undergrad work and degree. It is the level of achievement and communication skills that employers seek, not just a name of a campus.
Employers in the profession of the student’s choice can significantly reward the student who demonstrates strong communication skills, depth of knowledge, variety of experiences, and a wide range of skills that includes an employment and volunteering history. This skillset and their grades are the paycheck that will pay off once they graduate and “cash in” with a good job. From that point on, employers will focus on their experience, initiative, accomplishments, communication skills, collaboration, previous employment, work ethic, productivity, and their contribution (quality and quantity) to the business!
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