Article compliments of
Todd Herrenbruck (Part of Our New Financial Series)

You’ve shopped for new clothes, bought their school supplies, enrolled them in after-school activities and arranged the carpool.

Congratulations, you’re well on your way to starting the new school year on the right track!

But what about next year and the years following?

If your back-to-school checklist doesn’t include a plan for future education needs, you might need to make some additional preparations.

It may seem like college is years away, but waiting to save for those expenses — even for one year — can make a great difference.

Photo by Whimsy Studios

Planning For Their Future

Children grow quickly, and the cost of a college education is growing at an even faster rate.  Today, many of the elite institutions cost upward of $30,000 annually to attend—and those costs are projected to double in 18 years.

The sooner you start thinking about future college costs, the more time you’ll have to develop and implement a solid education plan.

• 5.9 % Average increase in public university tuition from 2006–2007 school year to the 2007–2008 school year

• $ 148,004 Estimated cost of four-year public university in 2026

• 5.9 % Average increase in private university tuition from2006–2007 school year to the 2007–2008 school year

• $ 300,000 Estimated cost of four-year public university in 2026 (Statistics from CollegeBoard.com)
  

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