My aspirations reach multiple aspects of my life and I want many things out of life. But, the main dream that I hope to accomplish is paying for my children’s college tuition and living costs while they pursue a higher education.
It’s common for parents to save and pay for their child’s college education. But in my culture it’s uncommon. I am the second person in my family to pursue a higher education. Due to financial constrains my parents weren’t able to save money or take on any loans for my college tuition costs. I take out loans for tuition and living costs. I’ll be paying off this debt on my own. I don’t want my children to have this burden but instead focus on their academics, college experience, and future. I want to shield them from the financial pressure I experience during college and after college.
Paying for your child’s college comes down to money saved, grants, scholarships, and/or loans. Many parents use a 529 savings plan. I’ve already set one up for my children and try to deposit what I can. As for grants and scholarships I will need to apply for those when my child is near graduation. Loans need collateral and good credit to get reasonable interest rates. I hope I won’t need to take out loans to pay for their education but if it’s needed I will do it. (Simple Tuition 2010)
The barriers that exist are financial. If there isn’t enough income I can’t save money. Luckily income will change in the future and I will most likely be able to afford to save more money. The help I can get is from grants and scholarships. But I won’t account these in since they aren’t guaranteed. There are also loans with lower interest rate. These are based on credit and collateral and I plan on having both by then.
My financial projection will be based on OSU’s tuition that I pay per credit hour. I will project a saving account and possible loans I would need to take out to make up the difference. I live off campus and not near the university. But I will project on campus living in this financial projection. I will account for basic necessities needed such as grooming items, entertainment, food, and transportation. I’ll then breakdown my own budget to by year and month for a net amount available to for a 529 savings. From there the 529 savings will be calculated for the coming years my children won’t be in college. I’ll then minus the total 529 savings from the projected cost of attendance. Then I’ll calculate the amount needed for a loan to cover the rest of the cost. Finally I’ll calculate a monthly payment for said loan.
