The College Solutions Blog

Valuable insights from Lynn O’Shaughnessy
a nationally recognized college expert.

College Costs
Featured image for “Paying Attention to College Prices”
January 11, 2017

Paying Attention to College Prices

College price tags are meaningless. Most students do not pay full tuition price for college. That said, paying attention to college prices can be extremely helpful in making college more affordable. Here’s a simple example: Getting a $20,000-a-year merit scholarship from a school that has a published price of $48,000 will obviously make a college much more affordable than receiving...
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September 28, 2016

Why You MUST Use Net Price Calculators!

Here is what typically happens during college admission season: Students apply to whatever colleges they want without having any clue about whether these schools will give them grants and/or scholarships. Parents are often nervously okay with their children disregarding price when finalizing their lists. The attitude of these moms and dads can be summed up this way:  Go ahead and...
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September 4, 2016

Discover Five Winning College Strategies

Are you eager to discover ways to find wonderful colleges and shrink the cost of a bachelor’s degree? I can help. I’ll be holding a free online presentation that will share with you five ways to find wonderful schools and shrink the cost of college. Everyone who attends the one-hour workshop will receive one of my resource guides, The Ultimate...
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May 22, 2016

Discover 5 Winning College Strategies

Do you feel paralyzed by your college choices? And, even more importantly, are you stressed about the crazy prices that colleges are charging for their bachelor’s degrees? I can help. I held a webinar on Memorial Day where I shared a variety of strategies that showed families how they can cut their college costs and find promising colleges and universities....
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April 5, 2016

Is a Trophy School Worth the Price?

I’ll be launching my latest online course – The College Cost Lab – in June. If you’d like to be among the first to know when I have more details,  just email me at Lynn@TheCollegeSolution.com. Lynn O’Shaughnessy In my last post, I wrote about smart teenagers who worked hard to get into elite schools only to have their dream schools...
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February 22, 2016

Claim This Higher-Ed Tax Credit

If you have a child in college, do you qualify for a federal tax credit or tax deduction? These are valuable tax benefits that can help you defray the rising cost of a college degree and yet some parents have no idea that they exist or whether they would qualify. American Opportunity Tax Credit For eligible parents, the best federal...
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February 4, 2016

Two Gifts To Cut Your College Costs

Here is some good news: There are plenty of smart moves that you can make to reduce your college costs. This is an especially important year to know what those options are because 2016 is bringing some big changes to the admission scene. Learn the Strategies You Need to Make College Affordable You’ll discover what these changes are, along with...
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January 31, 2016

How To Decipher a Financial Aid Letter

Financial aid awards are often confusing. I believe many colleges and universities intentionally make financial aid awards hard to decipher to trick families into thinking that their institutions are being generous even when they aren’t. Obfuscation is an effective way to keep parents off balance. Since we are heading into the season when students will be receiving their financial aid...
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Featured image for “Don’t make this dangerous college mistake”
September 1, 2015

Don’t make this dangerous college mistake

Here is what typically happens during college admission season: Students apply to whatever colleges they want without having any clue about whether these schools will give them grants and/or scholarships.  Parents are often onboard with their children disregarding price when finalizing their lists. The attitude of these moms and dads can be summed up this way:  Go ahead and apply...
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Featured image for “10 Tips to Cut College Costs”
August 26, 2015

10 Tips to Cut College Costs

Are you freaking out about the price of a bachelor’s degree? If so, you’ll want to attend one of my upcoming free webinars where I will share 10 easy ways to cut the cost of college. The two webinars that I had earlier in the summer were so successful – more than 900 people registered – that I’m rolling out...
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