Deep pockets

Entrepreneur,  Feb, 2004  by Jennifer Pellet

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Got a college-bound kid? Watch out for skyrocketing tuition costs. According to the "Trends in College Pricing 2003" report horn the College Board, a national nonprofit association, the average cost of tuition and fees at the nation's tour-year colleges and universities has jumped 42 percent for private institutions and 47 percent for public institutions over the past decade. The price tag for a year's tuition at a private university is now a whopping $19,710; a year of public school will run $4,694, according to the report.

"That's only tuition and fees--it doesn't include room and board," adds Jim Boyle, president of Arlington, Virginia-based College Parents of America, a nonprofit that provides resources and information for parents. Over the next decade, Boyle puts the true cost of a year of private college at between $40,000 and $60,000. He says the only way most parents can hope to fund a child's education without incurring considerable debt is to start planning early on.

"There are some wonderful savings plans, such as state-sponsored 529 plans, but you have to recognize that this is a high-ticket item and plan ahead," he explains, adding that parents whose children are already college age should consider Parent Loans for Undergraduate Students, low-interest federal loans available through the Federal Family Education Loan Program.--J.P.

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