Strategies to Help High Earners Pay College Fees

As college costs continue to rise, it’s not only families with financial struggles that are worried about paying the bill.  Even high-income families can be caught off guard when they realize that the costs of many top colleges now exceeded $75,000 a year for tuition, room and board – not including expenses for travel, a social life, and other amenities.  Schools in this category include Amherst College, Brown University, Columbia University, Dartmouth College, Georgetown University, University of Chicago, and University of Pennsylvania.

A recent Money article gave advice for families that are stuck in the middle, earning too much money to qualify for need-based aid but not enough to pay out-of-pocket. These families are encouraged to file a FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) even if they feel they will be denied need-based aid. The reasons are many. First of all, the FAFSA is the only way to access low-cost federal student loans.  In addition, to apply for many state and private scholarships that are not need-based, a FAFSA must be filed.  A completed FAFSA is also helpful if a family’s situation changes in the midst of an academic year due to job loss, medical expenses, or other sudden hardship.

An Organized Timeline Eases Student/Parent Stress

As parents and students plan for a new school year, it’s important to realize, even in times of uncertainty, that having a carefully organized timeline can help avoid the stress of an anxiety-filled senior year.

A student’s path to success actually starts during the early part of freshman year. Colleges admire students who show longevity in their activities, so the sooner students identify their clubs, sports, volunteer work, or other activities of passion, the longer they have to build a track record of accomplishments.  Freshman year is the perfect time to take on a new musical instrument or sport that might make a student particularly attractive to colleges.  A demonstrated commitment to volunteer work could earn a 50% to 100% tuition scholarship to The College of New Jersey which seeks “Bonner Community Scholars” and expects 300 volunteer hours each college year.

Vital to Gather Information and Ask Key Questions

As campuses across the country start to re-open, college-bound students once again have the opportunity to visit schools and gather vital information as they seek to make one of the most important decisions of their life.

The first step, before embarking on any college visit, is to educate oneself by reading information that is readily available on college websites and in reputable publications such as U.S. News & World Report’s Best Colleges guide. Students and their parents can easily access data for each college such as the acceptance rate, average SAT scores of accepted students, percent of faculty who are full time, percent of classes with fewer than 20 students, percent of classes with more than 50 students, and so much more.

Students Should Register ASAP for the August SAT

Registration is open for the August 28th SAT exam, and interested students should sign up quickly. If past years are any indication, there will likely be a shortage of available seats in Central New Jersey and families may have to embark on a road trip to get a seat for this extremely popular testing date.

The August SAT exam is being offered for the fifth consecutive year after being eliminated back in the 1970’s.  It’s extremely popular with students who view summer as the perfect opportunity to prepare for the exam without the pressures of school, homework, and afterschool activities.  By taking the exam in August, students have the opportunity to put their newly acquired SAT strategies and skills to the test without waiting for the fall SAT exams, which are offered the first Saturday in October, November and December.