college savings fund

Financial Motivation For A Two-Year Education

When it comes to college, you are considering an expensive proposition any way you look at it. There are, however, ways in which you can significantly reduce your overall expenses when it comes to getting your college degree. The first method, which in many cases is the most preferred, is by attending a community college for the first two years of your college educational experience. Believe it or not, you can literally save thousands of dollars throughout spending two years on the community college level.

You will hear all kinds of arguments on why it is better to attend all four years at a university. The universities almost always make these arguments. Unfortunately, their opinions are a little bit biased in these matters. Most universities offer equivalent courses with community colleges meaning that the first two years of study should transfer with no problems or snags along the rocky road to your degree.

The universities make money each semester you begin classes as a student. It is in their best interest financially to have you from the beginning rather than as a transfer. In fact, many universities offer lower level classes as auditorium classes. They pack more students into categories and have fewer professors or graduate students teaching the courses and maximize their money off the first- and second-year students rather than those in upper-level classes. Yet another reason to consider a community college for the first two years of your education.

Most community colleges are mainly commuter campuses. This means you won’t face the high housing costs that are associated with universities, particularly if you are attending college close to home. Community colleges also offer far fewer distractions that cost additional money than most major universities. This doesn’t mean that there aren’t ample social opportunities; it merely means that there are fewer of them. This also leaves fewer distractions than universities present when it comes to studying.

Community colleges simply cost less all around. While it would be nice if you could receive a full four-year education at this level, they are able, for the most part, to keep expenses down by not requiring the level of qualification that universities need of their professors for upper-level courses. You will have excellent, if not a superior quality of education at lower levels than you would have on the university level, but you will also eventually need to move on to the university level to complete your education.

For this reason, you would do well to save half of your savings over university costs for each of the two years you are attending community college and apply it to your university education. This will ease the burden of the additional costs of the university and feel as though you are paying the same amount for tuition throughout your education although you are literally saving thousands of dollars on your educational expenses.

Some states have educational savings plans that allow parents to save for tuition at current costs by enrolling. These plans cover two years of community college education and two years of university education. By locking in today’s prices, you are eliminating inflation. When you consider the fact that college tuition is increasing at an alarming rate this is by far an excellent way to go. You should check with your state and see if they offer a similar plan to parents of younger children and what the requirements are to enroll your child today.

If you are looking for a real value in education whether you only go for your two-year degree or move on to a university to finish your four-year degree you should find that a community college education offers a significant value for the money. Most people see that every penny they spent in a community college was a penny well spent.

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Educational Savings Accounts

When it comes to getting a college education, financing is one of the most important considerations that you will need to make. Unfortunately for far too many, it is one of the last factors thought about when it comes to the education of our children. If you are a parent, you owe it to your child and yourself to plan and plan carefully to cover the cost of your child’s education. There are, fortunately, a few great ways in which you can do this.

The most common is to begin by opening an educational saving account for your child (under the age of 18). When you open educational savings account for your child, you can contribute up to $2,000 per year per child. It is a combined total contribution however and includes the financial gifts of grandparents, friends, and family in addition to your contributions. The money from these funds can be withdrawn tax-free if they are used for educational purposes.

Educational expenses, in this case, include books, tuition, fees, supplies, and college room and board provided that your child is at least a part-time student. If you do not use all the funds for your child, there are options as far as what to do with the remaining funds in the account. The first option would be to leave the funds in the account and allow the account beneficiary to withdraw them up until the age of 30. There is a penalty involved, and the recipient will be required to pay income tax on those funds. You could also elect to roll those funds over to the next child under the age of 18 who will have educational expenses in the future.

The money you set aside in these accounts to cover the cost of the education of your child or children is not tax-deductible. However, it is a great way to begin saving money and investing in the future of your child. If you start spending the maximum amount $2,000 per year upon birth, your child should have a nice nest egg to help cover educational expenses.

If your child is fortunate enough to qualify for scholarships and other sources of financial aid you can turn the funds over as a graduation gift or save it for the next college student in your family that comes along. Either way, you’ve saved yourself a good part of the worry that goes along with providing for your family by having this fund set up for your children.

You can sign up for programs like Upromise to subsidize your contributions with donations from corporate sponsors as their way of thanking you for buying their products or using their services on any credit cards that you, your friends, and your family members have registered to go into your child’s account. Every edge you give yourself when it comes to investing in the education of your children is an edge worth having. College tuition rates are rising at an alarming rate while corporate expectations of college degrees are growing at the same near lightning speed. It means that a college degree is more critical for our children than in any past generations.

Take the time now to check into securing the future of your children by establishing an educational savings account. Let friends and family know that any gifts they are planning to give your children that involve money would be appreciated if they instead invested in the future of your children rather than now. You can also ask your friends and family to sign up their credit cards with Upromise to provide a little bump in donations to your child’s college savings account. These small steps add up to significant savings throughout 18 years. You might find that the investment you are making is adequate to cover the costs of your child’s tuition in full.

In closing, we invite you to share your comments on this and our other posts. If you find the information useful, please Like & Share us and subscribe to this channel for an update as we reveal new strategies. Remember to keep an open mind and Shift 4 Freedom.