Read up on ways to pay for college
During a workshop in which I was teaching preteens and teens how to budget, I asked one 16-year-old if she was planning to go to college.
"Absolutely," her mother volunteered.
And how, I asked the mother, will you pay for her college education?
"Oh, we plan on her getting scholarships," the mother responded.
"What if she doesn't get any scholarships or grants?" I inquired.
I got a blank stare -- like the look in the eyes of a deer that once ran into the driver's side of my van.
The mother's look told me what she later admitted -- that she didn't have a penny saved to send her daughter to college.
Many parents and their children approach the college process much like the deer running into the road. They just dart out there and hope for the best.
Given how much a college education costs, you need to plan ahead and know how to navigate through the twists and turns of the financial aid process. That way, you and your child can avoid being hit with a tuition bill that can cause serious damage to your financial future.
To help you get started, for the next few months I will be recommending several guides to read for the Color of Money Book Club.
This month I've chosen two books. The first is "FastWeb College Gold: The Step-by-Step Guide to Paying for College," by Mark Kantrowitz with Doug Hardy . Kantrowitz is a financial aid expert and publisher of FinAid.org. Hardy is the general manager and editor in chief of MonsterCareers.com. (By the way, FastWeb.com is one of the leading sites for information about scholarships.) The second book is the 2007 edition of "Paying for College Without Going Broke" by Kalman A. Chany with Geoff Martz . Chany is founder and president of the New York-based Campus Consultants Inc.
Let me warn you -- these aren't beach books. You won't breeze through them. These guides will give you a headache once you understand how much work you have to do. Some of you may panic before finishing the first chapters once you realize that when it comes to your child's college funding, you've been quite trifling.
Yet despite the heady topic, both books do an excellent job of walking you through every aspect of saving and paying for higher education. You'll get advice on how to negotiate for more aid if the initial offer isn't enough. Each book provides exceptionally helpful explanations and worksheets to fill out the all-mighty Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form, which is the federal needs analysis document students must complete to apply for financial aid. You will want to spend extra time reading those chapters.
Kantrowitz's "FastWeb College Gold" will appeal to high school or college students. To illustrate its points, "FastWeb" relies on a fictional family, the Gordons, whose eldest child, Matt, is just finishing his junior year in high school. You watch as Matt and his parents agonize over his various choices and the pros and cons of each. Should he go to a state school or a pricier private college? Should he pick a school he's not thrilled about but is the least expensive?
The book is supported by a free companion site at www.collegegold.com. Throughout the guide you'll find a box titled "Book to Web" with a recommendation for certain downloads and interactive tools. One very useful download is a planner that maps out two years worth of things a school student should do before leaving for college.
The book-to-Web references are marked with a code that you enter on the www.collegegold.com home page, making it easier to find the information online. It's a brilliant bonus. It can be so frustrating navigating some websites .
"Paying for College Without Going Broke" is also a good guide. I love the way it's organized into bite-sized chapters. The format allows you to easily skip around to the chapters that are most relevant to your situation. In this book, you'll find line-by-line help in filling out the FAFSA form. Chany discusses what parents and students should and shouldn't do to get the most aid.
Both books emphasize that the college financial aid process should be a family venture -- even if you have no intention of giving your child a single penny to pay for higher education. This isn't the time to proclaim your child is "grown" and should do this on his or her own. There's just too much money at stake.
Michelle Singletary is a columnist for The Washington Post. 
