by Tom O'Hare | Nov 2, 2023 | College Planning, Financial Aid, Uncategorized
We can all agree the pathway to education after high school can be expensive. One of the most significant financial investments an individual and family will make in their lifetime. Right behind purchasing our first home, saving for retirement, and raising a family. I know; I am the parent of four. The number #1 question I am asked is, can a student or family finance this critical life-changing event?
The answer is all about individualized, realistic goals and planning. Best for your student and family now and in the future. It is about expectations based on your student’s authentic academic and personal profile and the family’s financial capabilities. My dad, an educator, teacher, and early architect of the federal financial aid program of the ’70s, is still chirping in my ear, “Education is a lifelong exercise.” We forget to coach our kids as such, and as parents, we think poorly of our parental skills if we are not keeping up with what we hear in the grocery line or read on social media. Here are eleven of my favorite parent secrets.
Before We Leave High School
- Secret #1 – Colleges and universities lose up to 20% of first-year students; many do not graduate due to readiness and ability to pay. If your student does not want to go to college or needs more time, it is best to hit the pause button and start when ready.
- Secret #2 – If going in that direction, know how you will pay before starting the search process. Yes, it will be a rough estimate, but we do not buy our first home, a car, or even a new sofa until we have some concept of the cost. Getting in but not being able to pay can be a financial risk. Learn your family’s financial obligation early and always apply for financial aid.
- Secret # 3 – It is not always about our financial resources, money in the bank, income, or even eligibility for financial aid. If a four-year traditional undergraduate degree is the path ahead, let us ensure it is at the right school, for the right reason, and at the right investment. There are over 4,000 colleges and universities in the US and Canada, 250 in New England alone, which means there is a dream school for every student—search based on your student’s authentic GPA, not prestige.
- Secret #4 – pursuing a skilled professional career in the trades, financial services, retail, or hospitality industry can offer personal and financial fulfillment. Many require apprenticeships, OJT, or an associate’s degree to enter and should not be overlooked for the right individual.
While We’re Enrolled
- Secret #5 – ask for more tuition assistance through scholarships and need-based financial aid. If the college a student attends loses one student after the first year, they may get a transfer student but could have an empty seat for three years. That is lost revenue. They can’t afford to lose another!
- Secret #6 – keep searching for scholarships. Most students and families do not invest enough time and energy searching before the 1st year, never mind after enrollment. If you read the eligibility criteria for most private external scholarships, they are available to “high school seniors, enrolling AND returning sophomore, juniors, and seniors.” Keep searching and applying.
- Secret #7 – start lining up internships, paid part-time research, and coop positions (work while enrolled) at the end of the sophomore year of college. Opportunities can turn into offers for employment before graduation and valuable resources while enrolled.
- Secret #8 – graduate on time. It is too expensive to remain in college beyond your anticipated grad date: two years for community college and four years for traditional.
After College
- Secret # 9 – if you have private education loans, pay them down aggressively. Interest rates are generally higher than the Federal Direct Student Loans, and they carry limited repayment benefits. Refinance them if you need to and can.
- Secret # 10 – take advantage of all benefits offered through the Federal Direct Student Loan Program, including income-driven repayment terms and public services loan forgiveness.
- Secret # 11 asks your employer for help with loan repayment obligations. Recent changes allow employers to use traditional employee tuition reimbursement benefits to help pay down educational loans. Inquire with HR.
For more information on the contents of this article, questions or inquiries to support your students and family, contact us to schedule a conversation.- 617-240-7350 or www.getcollegegoing.com.
by Tom O'Hare | Oct 17, 2023 | College Planning, Financial Aid, Uncategorized
The Fall is a beautiful time to be in our beautiful state and New England. Just a stone’s throw in five directions, you can be in another State/region to enjoy different types of food, entertainment, activities, and the local settings. You can even track a few more miles and find yourself in New York and Canada. Ah, but this is not a travel piece. We’ll leave that to the travel experts and folks at AAA Northeast.
This Fall is a critical time for high school and college-age students and their families as the focus turns to what’s happening in and out of school. Academics, extracurricular activities, and work keep students busy while parents juggle transportation, social activities, and work-life balance. As parents, we work to be the guiding light, providing support and direction to help our students and young adults. It is essential to monitor how our students perform academically, personally, and emotionally during the Fall. Adjusting to new surroundings, coursework, a sense of independence, and classmates can result in a new level of excitement and quieting one’s outlook and behavior. Finding the right balance between learning what’s up and providing help can be a delicate process for parents. As a parent of four, I understand and can offer great resources to help you and your students.
Happening this Fall
Money – Money
I’m not talking about the continued rise in the cost of higher education, but that the freeze on Federal Student Loan payments and interest rates is finally over. Borrowers and May 2023 graduates are now hearing from the US Department of Education and Loan Servicing organizations (they manage the day-to-day) as part of the kick-start of repayment. There are a lot of resources available at StudentAid.gov if you have questions on who to pay, benefits and programs if you can not make the regular monthly payment, and if you might qualify for one of the loan forgiveness programs.
Lifelong Learning
Choosing an education pathway can be a maze of twists and turns that can baffle even the best of individuals. The recent announcement of the Mass Reconnect Program is a new, affordable opportunity for individuals 25 and older to complete their degrees or obtain valuable upskill credentials. Added to the traditional 4-Year pathway, the Mass Transfer Program, and our network of affordable Community Colleges, we have some of the strongest educational opportunities in the country.
Gateway to Financial Aid – FAFSA
Paying for college begins with learning about tuition assistance programs and how to apply for financial aid. The Free Application for Student Aid (FAFSA) is the gateway to learning about the availability of financial assistance from colleges federal, state, and many private scholarship providers. The completion and filing of the 2024-2025 FAFSA has been pushed back to late December. So, if you plan to attend college or an eligible skilled professional school in 204-2025, you have a little extra time to prepare. Start now by registering and creating your FSA ID account. Go to studentaid.gov and get the process going. Then, watch for and attend a workshop on Completing the FAFSA. They’re coming!!
Cracking the Secret to What Happens After High School
How do students and parents decide on college, work, or both? For parents this question can weigh heavy on their minds. Here are four questions for parents of 9th to 11th grade students.
- How will we finance our student’s next level of education?
- What are the goals and expectations for year 13 and beyond?
- Is college, work or a blend of both the right “next” for your student?
- Where are we now with post-high school planning, and what resources do we need?
Answering these initial questions can prepare every student and family for a successful and exciting post-high school planning experience.
Families now have a “workable workbook” to help organize and manage a successful college planning experience. Pivotal College Years’ newly released College Planning Workbook is now available on Amazon. The workbook describes and showcases tips and information on how to fund, investigate, apply, and select the school that matches a student’s academic and personal goals. Look inside the workbook today.
by Tom O'Hare | Aug 31, 2023 | College Planning, Financial Aid, Paying for College
College to career planning begins before the drop of leaves and the shift in the winds. Summer closes, and the seriousness of the Fall returns to households and all who support the education-seeking student. This year, by all indications, will be another fun and exciting experience. To help, I’m flying above the crowd to identify what’s on the radar.
Forty-six million borrowers will return to making their monthly loan payments as the freeze on Federal Student Loan payments ends. Borrowers should assess their financial budgets and eligibility for repayment relief or forgiveness.
A new group of high school seniors are now entering the three-stage, admissions application cycle, hoping to join the incoming Class 2024. Prepare and apply early. Colleges and universities are now making offers to the highest percentage of applicants who apply in November.
Families complete and submit the Free Application for Federal Aid (FAFSA) to qualify for financial aid from all sources. This year, the application filing date is pushed back from the traditional October start to an anticipated late December-early January 2024. Families should still get a jump on estimating their investment by visiting sampling public and private schools and using their Net Price Calculators.
Pop Quiz – How should you begin the college search process? Answer below
Scheduling campus visits is historically a Fall and Spring activity critical to the evaluation and investigation process when learning about college options. It is an excellent drive by experience for 9th/10th graders, mandatory for 11th grade, and necessary as 12th-grade students and families decide on the final cut.
Families will measure college as a pathway and question if there are other routes to follow after high school. The answer is a resounding yes!
After paying the tuition, college-bound and currently enrolled families should pause and check resources. Recalculating a family’s ability to finance future semesters is critical. Meeting college costs is one of the common reasons students leave school.
Communicating with college-age students can strain parents, especially moms. Creating a plan for when and how to stay in touch can account for the dead space.
Expectations and reality will reset after the first semester, with many students realizing college is more challenging than anticipated. Getting ahead of emotional and academic shifts early can help a student bounce back and feel successful.
Pop Quiz Answer: Traditional guidance given to 10th and 11th-grade families is to run a college list, visit, apply, and hope for financial aid. The first three are accurate steps, but only after pre-determining a family’s ability to meet the cost of education, public and private. You would not buy a $300,000 home without knowing your payment. Finding the college starts here.
The governor’s budget adds juice to making higher education affordable for residents of the Commonwealth. The new Mass Reconnect Program and expanded provisions for in-state tuition recipients provides many ways for students and families to find affordable and achieve education pathways. Learn more with this two minute read – https://wp.me/p7FUFP-2lv
by Tom O'Hare | Jun 16, 2023 | College Planning, Financial Aid
The season for scholarship awards. Congratulations to ALL
Recognition of academic and personal accomplishments in and out of school. Shared with students and families at commencement ceremonies, local civic and community award dinners, and workplaces for employees’ children. Valuable financial resources that students and their parent(s) spend countless hours researching, searching, and competing applications. Funded by individuals, groups, and philanthropic donors who support students and families working to finance their education to career journey. Vital for first-generation, low-income families, students already enrolled, or even those returning to complete a journey started.
Scholarships are a valuable gem that, when found and received, can mean the difference in attending, squeezing a tight family budget, or turning to borrow from a private education loan lender. As an advisor, I encourage students and families to seek these valuable financing resources. I have co-authored a Scholarship Workbook with my colleague Shelley Honeycutt of Pivotal College Years.
But there is a hidden dilemma, a concern that students, parents, and even the providers of these valuable financial resources may need to be made aware of – Scholarship Displacement.
Scholarship Displacement is a practice used by many private and public colleges and universities, often resulting in a negative net gain for students and their families. An action governed by institution policy, not a regulatory requirement, whereby a school replaces its funds with external scholarship funds. A swap, saving (replacing) the school funding and leaving the student and family absent of the resources they worked hard to secure.
Federal Regulations require a school to adjust a student’s need-based aid package to prevent an over-award when made aware of (receipt of fund or a letter) of the awarding of external funds. In question is not the occurrence of an overworld, but what action the school takes to correct the problem. In most cases, the school swaps out the funds for a need-based grant they have extended to the student as part of their enrollment and recruitment practices.
- Be sure to read your school statement regarding outside aid, private, federal, or state aid that arrives after a school has calculated and awarded need-based aid.
So, what is the solution? Here are some suggestions if you find yourself (student/family) in such a predicament:
Contact the Financial Aid Office to inquire:
- What is the institution’s procedure for adjusting a need-based financial aid package in the case of an over-award caused by an external scholarship?
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- Deduce or eliminate a Direct Student Loan (subsidized or unsubsidized) or Federal Work-Study award? 100% preferred action.
- Ask the school to allow the funds to pay indirect educational costs, including a computer, transportation, food, academic support services, and other campus expenses.
- Credit the scholarship to a future semester or academic year
- Will the institutional need-based grant be untouched?
- Does the school have a tolerance dollar value where no action is required?
If the school takes no action, it may be up to you to eliminate the over-award. This may require the student to:
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- Decline the Federal Direct Loan or Federal Work-Study up to and including the total of the external scholarship amount, eliminating a loan. A 100% preferred action.
- Notify the scholarship provider you have been the victim of Scholarship Displacement. They may not even know. Ask them to communicate with the school to request that the funds be used for educational costs, including a computer, transportation, food, academic support services, and other campus expenses.
- If you know the school’s practice and policy and can inform the scholarship provider before the award, they can take corrective action, including delivering the funds directly to the student.
- Ask them to discontinue using a School Notification Form, which placed the burden on the student, and family to notify the school that you have an external scholarship.
Along the way, there may be some pushback regarding the IRS Tax Codes. OK, technically, the awarding of scholarship funds should be considered untaxed income. OK, follow the tax codes; however, in 2024-2025, the question regarding untaxed income is projected to be removed.
Thanks to the work of Michele Waxman Johnson, Zanya Lewis, my colleague Shelley Honeycutt, and countless others, many states are waking up to this concern and passing legislation to stop Scholarship Displacement. Contact your legislative representatives locally and nationally to make them aware of this concern.
Financing college is hard enough.
by Tom O'Hare | Jun 15, 2023 | College Planning, During & After - Just Thinking, Financial Aid
Congratulations, Class of 2023
WOW – To the students and the parents of the graduating Class 2023 – WOW
Kindergarten, elementary, middle, high school, college, and graduate students – Congratulation!
It is time to pause, recharge and refuel. But let’s not hit the pause button for too long.
No summer sliding unless it is down the famous slip-and-slide in the yard.
Whether moving up a grade, to a new location, taking on an internship or apprenticeship, or joining the workforce, use the summer to champion forward. The Route One family is here to help!!
Exciting News!
We are thrilled to announce the release of our latest book, the “Pivotal College Planning Workbook,” now available on Amazon!
Unlock the secrets to successful college admissions by discovering valuable tips on your college search, securing funding, insights into financial aid, and more. Order your “Workable Workbook” today – available on Amazon now: https://amzn.to/3NG0BX7
Summer Checklist
Protecting Your Student and Family
In the eyes of the legal and medical world, when a student turns eighteen years of age, they’re an adult. Yes, we will always consider them our little kids, but it is important to put the correct documents in place to continue advocating and supporting them. Review and put in place safeguards before they leave home-
- HIPPA Agreement (medical)
- Durable Power of Attorney (legal)
- Liability Insurance (financial), and
- FERPA Waiver (college).
Speak with a professional to protect your student and family.
Summer Assignment – Read and Explore
Reading is fundamental. It improves English, writing skills, and vocab. In my private counseling practice, I ask all students to spend time reading during the summer. One novel a month. If sharpening academic skills, study habits, and testing prep is needed, consider introducing a tutor to the summer schedule.
For families of 10th and 11th grade students use the summer to pop on to a college campus. Check out a large, small, city or one located in a town. Students who have never seen or been on a campus will benefit from a brief (not a tour) look at what might be in their future.
Scholarship Employment
Working during the summer is important for high school or college-age students. It provides valuable spending money when returning to school. But there is an equally important summer job, a Scholarship Searcher. Committing time during the summer to research, identify, and create a database of eligible scholarships is an important job for rising seniors, 11th and 10th grade families. Its reported that hundreds of scholarship with Fall application deadlines are left in the money room. Obtain a copy of your Scholarship Workbook, how to be a scholarship searcher by subscribing to Pivotal College Years.com. Don’t wait till the Fall to learn you missed a valuable financial resource.
Rising Seniors
Get ahead of the Fall. Spend time on critical assignments to make the senior year enjoyable. If you’re college-bound, focus on four critical tasks:
Drafting your Essay
Completing the Profile Section of the Common Application
Narrowing your college options
Engaging your College Representatives
If your path after high school will lead in a different direction, don’t delay. Your planning process needs attention too. Whether it will be a skilled apprenticeships, work, or services, use the summer to map out your post high school pathway.
.Parents – your task is to determine your college financing strategy, and it is not just about your family resources. Where you apply is equally, if not more, important!
Right Around the Corner -Repaying Federal Education Loan
The end is nearing pandemic freeze on the repayment of Federal Student Loans is over. Repayment is set to restart in September, with the first payment due in October. It is time to dust off your Student Aid ID and PW to check your loan details and determine the next steps. Regular monthly payments, applying for an Income-driven repayment program (IDR), or Public Service Forgiveness Program (PSLF), and refamiliarizing yourself with your loan servicer. Consult the Federal Student Aid website to learn more https://studentaid.gov/
Education loan refinancing and modified repayment may be an option for a family whose budget has continued to experience financial strain.
Employer-sponsored education programs is no longer just tutition reimbursement. Today companies are offering employees services to help with student loan repayment, managing education debt, financial literacy and even colege planning advising. Consult with your companies HR department or associations employee benefits provider.
Consult an Independent Education Advisor
Need help with your checklist, calming the waters, managing education loan repayment, or hosting an onsite employee education and enrichment session? Consider speaking with an experienced Independent Education Advisor. Get College Going, a North Shore-based full-service education advising practice, has been helping families for four decadents through its extensive resources and expertise before, during, and after college. Visit www.getcollegegoing.com to schedule a conversation.
by Tom O'Hare | Mar 30, 2023 | College Admissions, Financial Aid
While raking the yard today (March 25), I got a call from a parent. Upset and confused. It seems that her daughter did not get accepted at her dream school, not to mention any of her other ivy and selective schools—1350 SAT, 3.8 GPA, active in sports and dance. From the three she did get into, little financial aid was offered, just a loan. I promised to call her back in a few minutes and put the yard tools away. The air was getting colder, and half the yard was raked. Yes, my office is open on the weekends.
Inside I jumped on a call and congratulated mom and her daughter on the outstanding acceptance offers from schools in and outside New England. I thought she would be very successful in any of the three. I listened, acknowledged her and her mother’s emotions, and shared some insights on what is happening in today’s college enrollment.
In March and April, families compare offers and make the final push to select the right school for the right reason at the lowest cost. An eye-opening and sometimes unsettling experience. We made plans to have a follow-up call to review possible appeals and finalize financing strategies with dad. I could feel the emotions in both voices and even a few tears. I reflected on the anxiety and stress; unfortunately, it is not unusual.
Parents of 9th, 10th, and 11th-grade students looking to college after high school are encouraged to begin the college planning process early. Like our students and their progressive learning, parents must invest time to obtain a working knowledge of college enrollment. Learning the who, what, when, and how of college admissions, funding, and available resources takes time and patients. Getting ahead start is a surefire way of eliminating April Tears! I’ve been a post-secondary education geek for 35+ years, and I’m still learning.
I’m In What’s Next
Check out my colleague Shelley Honeycutt from Pivotal College Years as she shares her insights on practical steps once accepted – I’m In What’s Next – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3v5DHP5b1c
For those who have decided, the deposit should be on its way. National Deposit Day is May 1. However, families can submit their acceptance (save my seat) and housing (I need a dorm room) deposit anytime prior.
Families working through their final selection and calculating the plan to finance the remaining education we have information on our website. Two reference tools: Five Criteria to Say Yes and the 2023-2024 Funding Checklist. Visit our Resources page to download the documents
A Different 13th Year
I hear more and more families talking about skipping college after high school, choosing a different education path, or entry point to the workplace. Recently a brighter lens has been focused on the importance of families looking at alternative pathways after high school. Educators, business leaders, and others now encourage families to begin as early as middle school to introduce the many opportunities students can to pursue their talents and interest after high school. If your family is one, I recommend you check out the work underway at American Student Assistance – www.asa.org
Need Someone On Your Team – Consult an Independent Education Advisor
Need help calming the waters, getting started, and addressing technical questions before, during, or after college, consult an experienced independent Education Advisor. They listen, focus on needs, and should have a holistic view from funding to enrolling (and beyond). Plus, you get the peace of mind that a professional is on your team 100% of the time.
Schedule a Conversation
