Following is an infographic that makes it easy to comprehend:

Created by: Online University

Here are 10 good reasons to file the FAFSA:

1. College is expensive

Even if you’re rich and can afford to pay for your child’s education, it’s expensive. Why would you pass up an opportunity to help with some of the cost?

2. It’s FREE

That’s right. It’s completely free to complete the FAFSA. You’ll spend some of your time completing the FAFSA and you could get thousands of dollars of financial aid in return. So one could say, it’s BEYOND free–they pay you!

3. Getting help is easy and FREE

If you get stumped, help is available using the online help tool or by submitting a question at the FAFSA web site or calling the help number listed on the site. Many schools even host a FAFSA day where they offer help to parents and students on how to complete the free form.

4. FREE money could be waiting for you

According to a recent Reuters article, about 1.8 million lower income undergraduates who might have qualified for aid neglected to file the FAFSA and missed out on financial aid. No matter what your income level, you should file the FAFSA because there is more money out there to be awarded than just need-based aid.

5. Federal money

The federal government provides over $80 billion dollars in grants, loans and work-study programs every year. The only way to get pell grants, perkins loans, stafford loans and other federal aid is by submitting the FAFSA. Federal loans offer the best interest rates and repayment terms for student borrowers and are superior to private student loans.

6. State money

FAFSA is the gatekeeper for state financial aid programs. Each state’s programs are different but they all require the FAFSA to distribute the funds. Check with your state’s higher education agency for deadlines and requirements. In some states the financial eligibility ceilings are much higher.

7. School money

Colleges and private scholarship sponsors offer billions of dollars in financial aid. Even if you don’t have financial need, you may be eligible for these awards. Some school and private scholarship programs are specifically designed for students who were rejected by federal financial aid. Some schools will not award merit aid unless you complete the FAFSA.

8. You’re divorced

The FAFSA only asks about the income and assets of the custodial parent. For financial aid purposes, the custodial parent is the one who has cared for the student for the majority of 2011. If the custodial parent earns a modest income, a student could qualify for financial aid.

9. You have two or more children in college

With two in college, your expected family contribution (what the parents can afford to pay) drops by 50%. Even if you didn’t get financial aid with the first, file the FAFSA because having a second child in college can net you some financial aid.

10. You really don’t have a choice

Look at it this way: FAFSA is the ONLY way to be considered for federal, state and private financial aid. Even if you don’t NEED the aid you still want to get it. Who doesn’t want FREE money?

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For a different perspective, visit my colleague Wendy David-Gaines’ blog (POCSMom) for 10 Reasons NOT to file a FAFSA.

Wendy was a (POCSmom) Parent of a College Student and was once a pre-POCSmom as well. She likes to help parents de-stress during the college process and has written a book of stories and anecdotes to help parents see the lighter side of college.

Created by: Online University

Why is this information important to parents?

Part of your college decision process is based on cost factors. Examining states who have low student debt might open possibilities to your student that you might not have otherwise considered. You can also view individual colleges to determine the amount of average student debt giving you additional information to help you make wise financial college choices.

If you click on the graphic above you can use the interactive map to learn about the colleges your student is considering. Be an informed parent and teach your student about financial college responsibility.

Created by: Online Graduate Programs

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Yesterday the Obama Administration announced important and timely new steps to help struggling student loan borrowers.  We applaud the Administration’s steps to make more federal loan borrowers aware of Income-Based Repayment and to provide additional repayment relief for up to 1.6 million current students, including a lower monthly payment cap and loan forgiveness after 20 rather than 25 years of responsible payments.

IBR has already helped nearly half a million borrowers lower their payments and avoid default, but many more borrowers are struggling to keep up with their payments in these tough economic times and could benefit from IBR and the proposed Pay-as-You-Earn option.

By encouraging more borrowers to convert their bank-based federal student loans to more cost-effective Direct Loans, the changes announced today will also help more people qualify for Public Service Loan Forgiveness. Those working for a public or nonprofit employer could see their remaining debt forgiven after just 10 years of payments. Borrowers with bank-based federal loans must already convert them to Direct Loans for their payments to qualify for Public Service Loan Forgiveness.

The Administration took two additional steps to help students and families decide where to go to college and how to pay for it.  The new model financial aid disclosure form, or draft “shopping sheet,” is designed to make it easier to compare the real cost of different college options.  The new Student Debt Repayment Assistant will help current borrowers with both federal and private student loans, as well as those about to enter repayment, better understand their options.

With these changes on the way, it’s more important than ever to make sure that the millions of borrowers who could benefit from IBR know it’s out there. With the class of 2011 about to face their first student loan payments, there’s no time to waste.

IBR has been available to borrowers since July 2009. For more about how IBR and Public Service Loan Forgiveness work and how to apply, see our consumer website:www.IBRinfo.org.

For more on the Obama Administration announcement, please visit the White House website.

Hearing from a financial expert is great, but hearing from a parent who has been able to apply wise financial advice and help her kids graduate debt-free is even better!

But you shouldn’t allow the worry of college costs to consume your life.  There are many practical and successful ways to pay for college (without drowning in debt) no matter what your income level may be.

Many families labor financially to make ends meet and they feel like it will be impossible for their children to attend a 4-year university.  This simply isn’t the case.  I’m not saying it’s going to be easy, but there are ways to send your children to college on just about any level of income.

Saving For College – Reduce Your Debt

Anyone can save money for college; all you need is to remove the excuses from your life.  Starting with financial basics, the best way to begin saving for college is to pay off all your debt (or at least live within your means and be actively involved in a debt payoff plan).  Sound too difficult you say?  That sounds like an excuse to me.

Living with debilitating debt and allowing bills to circle your life like a vulture is a surefire way to live paycheck to paycheck and never have the available funds to save for college.  What I’m trying to say is this:  paying for college isn’t some magical happenstance that you uncover on some random day.  It’s going to take hard work, and in some cases, a change in your financial landscape.

Regardless of your current income level, you have the ability to save for your children’s college fund. You might have to trim your expenses, adjust your spending habits, and redirect your lifestyle in order to free up money for the college fund.  But if you want to send your kids to college without financing 100% of their education with borrowed money, then you’ll have to decide what’s more important.

Think of it like this; if you can scrounge up even $100 a month to save for your child’s college when they’re born, you’ll end up with $21,600 (and that’s without interest or anything).  Sure, that might not pay for 4 years of tuition, room, and board, but it’s definitely a great start.

Saving For College – 529 Plans and Educational Savings Accounts

A 529 Plan is a tax advantaged college savings account designed to encourage families of any income level to save for their children’s education.  529 Plans are “qualified tuition plans” sponsored by states, state agencies, and educational institutions and are authorized by section 529 of the IRS (hence the name 529 Plan).

The encouragement to save for college within a 529 Plan comes in two forms: the ability to save money free from Federal taxes and the ability to receive a deduction on State taxes.  One benefit to a 529 Plan is that anyone, upon creation of the account, can be named the account’s beneficiary, regardless of age.

The 529 Plan is a lot like a Roth IRA for your college savings fund. The savings will grow tax-deferred and any withdrawal is tax-free as long as you use the money withdrawn for qualifying educational expenses.

A Coverdell Educational Savings Account (ESA) is another tax advantaged college savings account which is meant to inspire families to save for future educational expenses.  The difference between an ESA and a 592 Plan is that an ESA’s beneficiary must be a student under the age of 18.

An ESA also has a maximum annual contribution limit of $2000 and the owner of the account has the freedom to choose what types of securities they would like to invest in (stocks, bonds, ETFs, mutual funds, etc.).

With both types of college savings accounts, you’ll incur a hefty 10% tax if you withdraw any amount of money from either account and use it for non-education related expenses.

Paying For College – Grants and Scholarships

No matter how much or how little you’re able to save for your child’s college education, you’ll always want to be aware of and informed about college grants and scholarships.  After all, this is free money we’re talking about.

Scholarships are offered by high schools, colleges, and other organizations usually recognizing some sort of educational, athletic, or humanitarian achievement.  Scholarships vary by amount and length. Some are one-time gifts and others are recurring payments made as long as grades and other collegiate performances are maintained.

Information about college scholarships is usually available from your high school, your hometown city hall, and the university you wish to attend.  You can also search for scholarships on the web.  Some of these scholarships may be smaller than a say a university’s alumni scholarship, but $500 here and $1000 there really starts to add up.

Grants are another “free money” option.  The government offers need-based grants to families with a low income.  Other organizations are free to offer grants to students that show academic promise or that meet other requirements.

Paying for College – Financial Aid Student Loans

There are numerous kinds of financial aid and student loan programs available, but these loans should be your last resort when it comes to financing college.  I’m not saying student loans are bad, but financially responsible parents won’t rely solely on borrowed money to fund their children’s college.  As I mentioned earlier, if you save even $100 a month, you can drastically cut the amount of money you need to borrow to send your child to college.

There are Federal Stafford Loans, Perkins Loans, Plus Loans, and numerous other student loans available from private institutions.  If you qualify, you can apply for subsidized student loans that are basically interest free until you graduate and begin loan repayment.  FAFSA is your Free Application for Federal Student Aid.

Final Comments

Jamie Scott from CreditDonkey also reminds you that while “student credit cards are a convenient option to help students pay for short-term small expenses such as groceries,” there are other options available for long-term larger expenses such as tuition.

The bottom line is that you’ll probably use two or three different sources to fund your child’s college expenses.  Don’t give up just because of your low income and don’t think that your high salary will always be there for you.  No matter where your income level is at, research, preparation, and responsibility will go a long way when it comes to saving and paying for college.

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Today’s guest post is from Jamie Scott, social media advocate with CreditDonkey. Jamie helps parents and students prepare for college by evaluating student credit offers. As a parent herself, she knows all too well the concerns most families have about responsible credit usage.

If you’re a parent of a college-bound teen you may be asking yourself the same question, especially as it relates to paying for the education. You might want to jump over to my blog at CollegeParenting.com (The #1 Question Parents Ask Me) to check out my suggestions and then take a look at Jeff’s infographic to help you visualize the process.

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Copyright © 2011 Student Loan Marketplace

When I find a product that can save you thousands of dollars on tuition, I get so excited because I know that you, as a parent, are in need of some financial relief. Let’s face it, even if you have saved and planned, who can’t afford to avail themselves of every opportunity to save money? On the other end of the spectrum, if you haven’t been able to gather a small fortune for college, tools that allow you to finance the education without parent loans are a godsend.

Monica Matthews’ “How to Win College Scholarships: A Guide for Parents in 10 Easy Steps” is one of those godsends. I have read this short, concise book and I can tell you she makes it EASY to hit the ground running, get organized, and help your student find those scholarships. She falls into a class that I like to call “parent advocates”. We are the ones who have done the leg work, succeeded, and want to pass on our parent related expertise to other parents. Monica has done the leg work in the scholarship search process. She found herself in that awkward place with her son–a promising student aspiring to college, and parents who wanted to support that decision financially.

Instead of taking out loans, or going back to work full-time, Monica opted to spend her time helping her son search, find and apply for scholarships. In 10 easy steps, she outlines the process she took, gives you bottom line tips along the way, and provides you with some “out-of-box” tools to help your student stand out with the scholarship committees. She addresses all the aspects of scholarship applications from essays, to recommendation letters, to transcripts, to the application completion and delivery.

The best part about Monica’s e-book is that it’s simple and easy to understand. If you follow her easy 10 step program, the scholarship process becomes doable for any parent and their student. You can sit back and hope that your student does all the work, or you can offer help and support by grabbing a copy of Monica’s book, reading it, and rolling up your sleeves.

Who wins? Your student will win by graduating without debt. You will win by helping your student find and win those scholarships. Once those winning letters begin to flood your mailbox, you’ll be glad you took my advice and added Monica’s e-book to your college admissions library.

Grab yourself a copy TODAY–>How to Win College Scholarships: A Guide for Parents in 10 Easy Steps