Economy Impacts Students College Plans

In tough economic times students may be tempted to cut out or scale back
college plans. That's a tough nut to swallow and not necessarily the best alternative
to follow. Certainly one should investigate all possible funding alternatives before
canceling or scaling back college plans. Dropping the level of the schools you apply
for may be a good strategy alternative especially if the career choice is not going to
be a top level income career choice. As an example if your goal is to be a corporate
lawyer the top schools may help you achieve that goal. On the other hand if you
want to work in company in a department full of computer programmers a local
university or even community college may meet that goal with a substantial
reduction in the total cost of the education.

Cappex.com LLC just completed a study of almost 3,000 prospective college
students. Over 15% have indicated that they are putting their college plans on
hold because of the concern that they won't be able to fund college. Over 55% are
considering downgrading the quality of the school they will be applying to in an
attempt to make their college costs more affordable. An even larger percentage
are increasing the amount of time spent on searching for scholarships in an
attempt to reduce the costs. All of these were strategies included in the study.

All of these are valid strategies. One should also consider seeing if alternative
strategies may be able to increase your college affordability. This is an area where
some professional help might be appropriate. We have two different alternatives
that may help.
First lets find out if we can increase your eligibility for need based financial aid. We
utilize the information needed for the (FAFSA) Free Application for Federal Student
Aid. This information is what is used to generate your Expected Family Contribution
or (EFC). This is the dollar figure that you have to come up with before you are eligible
for financial aid. We can often lower your EFC and that makes you eligible for more
financial aid.
Second there are a number of Corporate programs available that can help you pay for
school. Some of these programs are not need based and do not discriminate against
families with significant financial resources. Some of these are available to our clients.

How to Increase Eligibility for Student Financial Aid

We work with clients to improve financial aid eligibility for college The amount of financial aid your student may qualify for is based on family assets and income. Saving in the form of stocks, bonds,mutual funds,savings and checking accounts,bank CDs, investment real estate and money market funds are all considered assets. Consequently, your net worth in these products count against you in financial aid eligibility determination used in the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)
We can help you reallocate your assets so your financial portfolio is treated favorably in the FAFSA process. We offer several financial instruments that provide safety and protection of your principal while also reducing FAFSA qualifying assets. You have absolutely no risk of market loss with these products!
If your family income exceeds FAFSA guidelines, we offer long term investment strategies that provide safe, secure growth. Products such as Coverdell Education Savings Accounts, 529 Plans, ROTH IRA Plans, and other general tax deferred savings vehicles all are available to help pay for college costs.
We look forward to assisting you and your student with college funding. How can we help you?
Please contact us here or on the website.
www.columbusfinancialplanningpros.com
polarisfinancialservices@gmail.com