Some people don't think beyond college tuition when planning for college. Stop right there, it's about to get more costly. But there are things you can do to save on these additional expenses.
College room and board must play a major role in planning for your college tuition. Your college room and board will be determined largely by which college he or she decides on. Many colleges require freshmen to stay on campus if their families don't live locally. Many of the colleges also have a mandatory meal plan for freshmen as well.
College Dormitories usually come with a meal plan, sometimes this plan is optional and nearly all dormitories have on site security.
There are also possibly Campus Apartments at the college. These apartments normally come with a small kitchen.
You could consider off-site housing or apartments. The college normally organizes these and what you are renting is a bedroom, bathroom and normally living room and kitchen common space between your child and 2-3 other people the apartment complex rents to. This could turn out to be more cost effective than staying on campus. Most apartments rent on a 12-month lease. If your child plans on coming home for the summer, you may want to consider asking for a 9-month lease or subletting in the summer.
Now that we have living quarters arranged, it's time to look for a computer.
Before you go to the expense of getting your child a new computer, first check with the schools computer center and find out which operating system the school uses. To make things easier, you'll want to make sure you pick the same operating system.
Sometimes a University will have an on-campus computer store where students are offered a discount of about 10% on new computers. Shop wisely. Check local computer stores and the Internet to make sure you are getting the best deal for your money.
You may also wish to consider a laptop as the student can take this to class or lectures. Plus, laptops have come down in price substantially.
And while laptop prices have gone down, textbook prices have gone through the roof. Most campus bookstores sell used books at a lesser price. Check through the book before you purchase it and make sure there are no obvious rips, tears, or missing pages. Also make sure it has not been so heavily highlighted and doodled on that it can be read.
Your student can save even more money by selling his or her books back to the college campus bookstore. Also, before deciding where to purchase your books, there are online sources that sell discounted student books.
How innovative are you? You can actually get paid for your child to live off campus if you so desire. Not only will you save on his or her boarding costs but make a profit too. If you are financially fit, consider purchasing a house near campus. You can then hire your child as the building manager in exchange for free rent. And don't forget to rent out the extra bedrooms.
Planning for college tuition is always frustrating because, as parents, there are things we simply forget to think about. Our goal is normally to make sure our child gets the best college degree and experience possible. Not to mention, it was a whole lot different when we went to school. But the opportunity is just as large for your student to be more accomplished and get a better job on the outside world.
David W. Ratliff is the President and Co-Founder of College Degree Planners, LLC. A College Planning Specialist since 2001, we provide college planning and preparation assistance for your child is what College Degree Planners is all about. Adequately planning for college can include college selection, scholarships, and participating in college prep programs as well as simply knowing the college planning, college loans, and prep time lines, early preparation is the key. For more information on helping your child plan for college, visit David's web site: http://www.collegedegreeplanners.com |
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