When and How do you actually pay for college

Paying for College
1

Forgive me for the stupid question but I didn’t go to college and am trying to figure this out for my son. He is likely to get no financial aid so I’m trying to plan for when I need to have what amount by.

I gathered from the FAQ pinned here that there are some fixed costs - the course enrollment fees but then there are also some things like food and books that are more under your control. Does that mean you just pay those costs as you go along? Like I give my kid a debit card and he pays for food and books as he needs them?

Do you pay for the housing all upfront? Also the tuition up front? And if so does it tend to be up front for the whole year or each semester or quarter etc?

He hasn’t picked a specific college yet as he is waiting for Admission results

I appreciate any help.

2

You pay the billed costs when the schools bills them, usually at the beginning of each term (Aug and Jan, or Sept, Jan, and March for tri-mesters). That bill will be tuition, fees and room and board is you opt to live on campus.

If you want to live off campus you can pay for things as you go along. Some schools allow payment plans through the year, so you can start paying monthly in July. Books you pay for yourself.

3

Usually the college will offer a monthly payment plan (there may be a fee to enroll in the plan, maybe about 10 bucks extra per payment). If you don’t do a plan, it’s usually due every semester.

How food is handled depends on where your child lives. If on campus, there is likely a required meal plan which would be billed along with your dorm and tuition costs by the semester. If off campus, your son would pay as he goes to each cafeteria, restaurant or grocery store. Books are paid for as purchased. Shop around! Askmaboutna used book exchange for your university or dorm.

Unless you are very high income, do the FAFSA and any school-required financial aid forms. The FAFSA is how your son gets a student loan, even if he doesn’t qualify for other aid. Also, students who don’t qualify for federal Pell grants can still qualify for school- or state-specific funds through the FAFSA (and the Profile for elite schools).

4

we are full pay as well – so about 3-4 weeks before quarter starts, we get the full bill for that quarter ( housing,food , tuition,fees) by email reminder , and you have the option to pay by bank debit, etc. Our D has a debit card to use for books (she rents mostly from amazon) and incidentals.

5

At least in my experience: For daughter who lives on-campus we pay tuition, fees, room and board at the beginning of each semester. For daughter who lives off-campus we pay tuition and fees at the beginning of each semester, rent once per month, and food costs whenever daughter gets to the supermarket. Books have to be purchased before the beginning of each semester. Students will need additional funds for various incidental expenses. Both do have debit cards from banks that are local to where they go to school.

6

Thank you all. This is very helpful.

7

Don’t forget about the health fees unless you’ve waived those.

8

To be specific, unless the COLLEGE has waived the health care fee. At least in some cases, the colleges require proof that your kid has coverage that works at the college location. Otherwise you have to pay for the school plan. It varies by school, and their web sites aren’t always very forthcoming on this topic.

9

Look up the schools’ req’d info for freshman meals. Many schools require the purchase of a meal plan. Sometimes there is a specific freshman meal plan. That would be purchased before each semester or quarter…depending on how the school is set up.

Usually this info is under the section called campus dining or similar.

10

This was our timeline, each school does things a bit differently.

This was an instate school and there was no requirement for specific insurance but some schools (private/OOS) will want to examine if your insurance coverage satisfies their requirements in order for a waiver to be approved. There might be a deadline to do this and might have to be done every year.

My D applied in August and was accepted in September. She received a merit scholarship in December.

We filed FAFSA and state aid form in February

She paid enrollment deposit in March.

We received estimated financial aid award by letter in April. This included current tuition and mandatory fees, average room and meal plan costs, estimated book, transportation and personal expenses. It detailed the student loans she could borrow, the estimated state grant and the scholarship.

She scheduled her orientation dates in April.

She signed up for housing in May.
There was a housing deposit, a housing contract (for both semesters), verification of menginitis vaccination, application for living learning community, roommate request and she could rate residence halls in order of preference.

She was reminded to accept/reduce/decline her loans in her financial aid portal by June.

She designated me as an authorized payer so I would be able to see the bill and pay it.

The housing information came out in July.

She went to orientation and registered for first semester classes in July.
She had received outside scholarship checks and she took them to the bursar’s office to be applied to her account.

The first bill arrived in July. It was for fall semester. It was due in August.

It listed the tuition for the fall semester (1/2 of yearly tuition), 1/2 of the mandatory fees, additional course fees for chem lab and bio lab, 1/2 of the yearly room and meal plan charge.

It had credits applied for 1/2 the yearly scholarship, 1/2 of the outside scholarships, 1/2 of the state grant.
Part of her enrollment deposit was credited to the fall semester bill as well.

It then listed the remaining balance we had to pay and the due date.

She signed up for Amazon student prime (free for 6 months)

My D received move in information with move in date and time and parking placard in mid August.

Then we moved her in.

She had received some emails from professors about the books she needed and had rented one from Amazon, bought one or two from the University book store.

She happily attended freshman orientation and we said a tearful good-bye and went home (in the now empty minivan).

In November she had a meeting with her advisor and registered for spring semester classes.

A few weeks later the spring semester bill came out which was due in December.

She declined the loans the first year because she had outside scholarships. But the second year she took out a loan and had to do entrance counseling and Master Promissory Note first.

Hope this helps.

11

Thanks so much! It does help.

12

At my DS’s school, the tuition payment plan begins in the summer before school starts. An outside organization manages it and you need to enroll before school starts. It is a great way to spread the costs out and it is easy to do everything online.