Tag: paying for college


Don’t make these 6 common FAFSA mistakes

Posted on January 14th, 2015

If you have a child in college this coming year, it’s time to start filling out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) at fafsa.gov.

When completing the application, it’s important to make sure you’re not making any major mistakes that could jeopardize your student’s chances of receiving financial aid.

Check out the infographic from TurboTax to find out 6 most common mistakes people make on the FAFSA so that you can maximize your chance of receiving grants, work-study, and other forms of financial aid to help pay for college.

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Colleges to blame for rising costs

Posted on January 7th, 2015

"The massive infusion of money through student aid and other avenues carries with it no incentive to control costs or seek out efficiencies. It does nothing but encourage colleges and universities to charge even more, secure in the knowledge that student aid will rise to keep up." -- A. Barton Hinkle

As college costs have risen significantly faster than the cost of other goods and life purchases over the past two decades, many have questioned how colleges can justify the increased burden on students and families. While financial aid has increased to help students afford college and programs such as Income-Based Student Loan repayment have been touted […]

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The best college values under $30,000/year

Posted on December 19th, 2014

With the cost of college topping $60,000 at some schools, it may seem impossible for regular families to afford higher education.

But there are still plenty of quality colleges for half the cost. Kiplinger recently released a list of the best value colleges that still cost under $30,000 per year, all of which provide a great bang for your tuition buck.

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Comparing the cost of college to other life purchases

Posted on December 11th, 2014

Everyone knows college costs are up, but how does that rise compare to the increase in prices of other life purchases, like cars, housing and consumer goods?

This chart shows how the rise in college tuition at public and private universities compares to the increase in cost of items in the consumer price index (CPI), homes, cars, and healthcare as well as the median income.

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These are the US colleges where tuition has skyrocketed

Posted on December 9th, 2014

We’ve written extensively how college costs, both public and private, have risen dramatically over the past two decades and continue to rise each year.

While nearly every college has raised tuition, some have increased much more than others. The charts from Quartz rank public and private colleges by the largest tuition increases in 2014 US dollars, after adjusting for inflation.

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Calculating the value of college majors

Posted on November 24th, 2014

We’ve expressed that the value of your college degree is influenced heavily by several factors, including choice of major and how much debt you take on to pay for it.

And now a new calculator from The Hamilton Project makes it easier for college-bound students to understand how much their degrees will cost them over time depending on major, student loan debt, interest rates, and term of the loan.

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Evaluate return on investment when choosing a college

Posted on November 3rd, 2014

"Parents realize the economy hasn't changed much in the past six years, and they're shopping for college like they would any other major product. This isn't an emotional transaction anymore." -- CFG Co-founder Andy Leardini

With the cost of college rising, more parents are beginning to look at the return on investment of where they send their children to college and evaluating whether schools are worth their high costs. As College Financing Group co-founder Andy Leardini told Buffalo Business First in a recent article, the college decision has become like […]

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College costs even higher for students who don’t graduate on time

Posted on October 19th, 2014

"Nine out of 10 freshmen think they’ll earn their bachelor’s degrees in four years. But fewer than half that many will. And 45 percent won’t have finished even after six years." -- Jon Marcus

Four years at college is pricy enough, with the average cost of one year at a 4-year private university topping $40,000 and $18,000 at public universities. Over the course of four years, those costs really add up. But the majority of American college students doesn’t even finish their degree in that time, according to a new report […]

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CFG founders give advice to families paying for college

Posted on October 8th, 2014

"You need to treat choosing a college like a business transaction, not an emotional transaction." -- CFG Co-founder Andy Leardini

As parents of college-bound students know, applying to college is more than a financial decision–it’s an emotional one as well. Our founders Rick Ross and Andy Leardini recently appeared on Winging it! Buffalo Style to discuss the challenges families and students face when choosing a college and figuring out how to pay for it. Taking the emotion […]

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7 ways to save money on college textbooks

Posted on October 2nd, 2014

As college students know, buying textbooks can add thousands of dollars to your college bill before you’ve even taken a class.

While textbooks are often a ‘necessary evil,’ they don’t have to put you even further into debt.

Watch this video from WWLP, and read our tips below for 7 ways to save money on college textbooks.

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