The College Solutions Blog

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

College savings
November 10, 2010

Will Saving For College Hurt Your Odds for Financial Aid?

Is your family going to qualify for financial aid? Many families that I talk to assume that they won’t qualify for financial aid. Many believe that the money that they’ve stashed in their college savings accounts will kill their chances. Stressed Out Dads It’s been my experience that it’s usually dads who get stressed out about how colleges will treat...
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February 16, 2010

Saving for College with a Roth IRA: 8 Things You Need To Know

There’s been tons of media attention over the years on the best places to save for college. The 529 savings plan has grabbed the most attention. I’ve used 529 plans for both of my kids through Vanguard, but today, I want to suggest another potential way to save for college:  a Roth IRA for your child. A Roth IRA won’t...
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November 28, 2009

The Odds of Problem College Drinking and Other Posts

College Drinking: Top Five Risk Factors Which college students are more likely to be problem drinkers? One of the three college blog posts that I wrote for CBSMoneyWatch this week shared the top five risk factors for college drinking.  I bet most people can guess that one of the biggest college drinking risk factors is a heavy Greek presence on...
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October 6, 2009

Fixing 529 College Savings Plans

Changes may be coming to  529 college savings plans. I think most parents will like the proposed college savings changes, which could lead to lower costs and more plentiful tax benefits. As a financial journalist, I’ve been writing about 529 plans since states began rolling them out in the late 1990s. During that time I’ve seen too many mediocre 529...
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