The Double Saving Divas

We conducted our latest Facebook chat with the Double Saving Divas on Friday and, as usual, it was filled with useful information about saving, budgeting, and money management. In case you missed it, here’s a round up of the major topics of discussion. Be sure to follow us on Facebook so you can participate in the next chat, which will be taking place in the coming weeks.

amarudontv.com

When you attend college as a “normal” aged student in your late teens and early twenties, you have no responsibilities other than getting that A, and (usually) mom and dad are paying. If you return to school later, with a family and a job, it’s a different story. Be sure your life is financially prepared for your return to school.

lifeafterwealth.net

As the class of 2012 graduates from high school, parents are excited to see their children grow up, but many are afraid of the mounting debt from a college bill looming in the distance. These days with the cost of college rising as well as everything else, if your child is intent on going to college, you’ve got to think strategically on how you both will manage the heavy price tag. The Daily Finance shares five top websites to assist parents and students in securing financial aid for college.

1. US Department of Education: The site will help you stay abreast of any changes to Student Aid programs as well as an early evaluation on financial aid eligibility.

2. National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators: Take a look under the “Students, Parents & Counselors” section, you’ll find resources for state-by-state financial aid programs.

3. The College Board: Its scholarship search tool has a selection of over 2,200 programs with financial aid, scholarship and internship information.

4. Studentaid.com: Families with a household income over $40,000 will be charged for its services, but this site offers a variety of scholarships, grants and loans on a customized basis.

5. Savingforcollege.com: While this plan also offers financial aid and scholarship information, it concentrates more on creating a savings plan for your child’s college education.

http://saleshq.monster.com

If you want to see how fast your money can go to waste, try saving money for your children’s college education. Yes that’s right, turns out your caring and loving gesture can in fact be one of the worst financial mistakes you can make. According to MSNBC, new research shows that college kids whose parents fund the entirety of their education—from tuition to books to housing, end up being really lousy students.

“Parents who pay for everything — including their children’s recreation and fun money — they have children who are more heavily into drinking, drug use, marijuana use,” Laura Padilla-Walker, associate professor at Brigham Young University’s School of Family Life where the research was conducted said to MSNBC.

BYU’s School of Family Life took their data from 400 college students across the nation. The study observed that students whose parents paid for everything were generally not only poor students, they also had no real idea of what they wanted to do when they graduated. The study also concluded that students receiving no help at all were the ones that were most focused on the future. So it seems to help your children fully understand the benefits of school and learn how to focus and study hard, they need to carry some of the heavy price tag of college.

“It doesn’t look like you have to pay all your student’s college expenses in order for them to be successful,” Padilla-Walker said.

That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t help out at all. Students that end up paying for college in its entirety often take longer to graduate or are forced to drop out because they can no longer afford it. They also may lack the time to truly enjoy all aspects of college.

So what’s the best amount to contribute? According to Prof. Padilla Walker, about 25 percent.

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With all the talk these days about the exorbitant cost of a college degree, some may wonder if a degree is actually worth it. Ivy league schools boast the highest tuition but also offer the most lucrative networks, which begs the question is it about where you go or the cost value of your education. TAP correspondent weighed in on the topic via her fellow New Yorkers.

(Bankrate) — Parents seeking an investment safe haven that provides guaranteed returns may not find one in prepaid tuition plans. Long touted as a no-risk way to save for college, prepaid plans generally allow parents to purchase college credits at slightly above current market prices, and then cash them in when their child heads off to school.  Some investors predict that prepaid plans may be a thing of the past in coming years. Since 2008, several prepaid plans have either closed down entirely or stopped new enrollment, as Tennessee recently did.  The 10 remaining state-run prepaid plans and one independently operated plan provide good value, but also come with restrictions on where funds can be used and questions about whether funds are safe. Here’s what you need to know before investing in 529 prepaid tuition plans.

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By Charlotte Young

As Americans struggle to cover the cost of increasingly high tuition in recent years, many are left wondering whether a higher education is indeed a good investment.

The Pew Research Center set out to answer that question in a new study called “Is College Worth It?” Their results confirm that yes, it is worth the money—maybe. Three-fourths of those surveyed believe that the cost of college is no longer affordable, but 86 percent of college graduates said for them, “it was a good investment.”

President Obama agrees; as such, he has set a goal of having the U.S. dish out the largest number of college graduates in the world by the year 2020, according to CNN.

Those who have a college degree estimate that they make an average of $20,000 more a year. Essentially, college graduates could potentially earn about $550,000 more in a lifetime. But for those who only have a high school degree, they believe that they make $20,000 less a year since they don’t have a college degree.

But it’s not just the college degree that makes the money–it’s the field of study. College grads that choose a line of work with a low salary range may make as much or less thank high school graduates.

Money aside, the study did find that those who went to college were more satisfied in their careers.

“You have a public that understands that college is important,” Paul Taylor, one of the authors of the study, told CNN. “But at the end of the day, if you push them and ask is it college or character, people place more importance on character than a college diploma.”

(Wall Street Journal) — When 24-year-old Kristi Roybal was choosing between graduate programs in social work and international studies, she picked one at the University of Denver, which offered her a $20,000 annual scholarship.  But with a $53,000 total annual tab, she had to figure out how to cover the rest.  So Ms. Roybal found a work-study position that pays $5,000 a year. She gets $1,000 per quarter as a teaching assistant. She has taken out four federal loans and has a grant from her time working in an AmeriCorps program.  Getting an advanced degree isn’t cheap. But as Ms. Roybal can attest, there are a lot of options for financial assistance out there — whether you’re continuing your education right after graduating college, or if you’re going back to school after a few years in the work force.

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(Inside Higher Ed) — The last two presidential administrations have focused significant attention and energy on trying to simplify the process by which would-be college students apply for and receive federal financial assistance, given the prevailing view that the complexity of the system deters some young people from higher education,  A study to be released during an event on Capitol Hill today shows just how large the information gap is. The report from the College Board’s Advocacy and Policy Center, “Cracking the Student Aid Code,” finds that many parents have little understanding of how much it costs to attend college and of financial aid options — and that the knowledge deficit is biggest for those who already have the least access to higher education: students from Latino families and from low-income backgrounds.

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(Forbes.com) — Private colleges love to lure students with promises of hefty financial aid packages. The trouble for prospective students and their parents lies in grasping the details of that “aid.” What on first blush might sound like a free, or low-cost ride, can actually involve a package comprised predominantly of federal loans. Yes, they may get a student through school–but with big debts to pay off at the other end.

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