Avoiding the Student Loan Money Pit in FL
(Posted Nov 7, 2011 07:05 am)
By Les Coleman
TALLAHASSEE, FL - One-third of Florida families list "increase savings" as a top New Year's resolution, according to numbers crunched by financial advisory firm Edward Jones. One way to make good on that resolution is to save for college.
The Florida Pre-Paid College Plan has helped more than 200,000 students pay for higher education over the years. Plan Director Dr. Will Holcombe says this is the best way to bypass the burden of student loans.
Link:
Read more about Florida Prepaid College Plans here.
"The prepaid plans in Florida are a tremendous
opportunity for parents to begin to save for their
child's education early."
Holcombe says families have about three more months,
until the end of January, to sign up. New research
indicates kids who have a dedicated savings account for
their higher education are four times more likely to
attend college than those who do not.
The prepaid tuition plan can be used at any of Florida's
11 public universities, 28 community colleges or
technical schools. Or the full value can be transferred
to most private and out-of-state colleges, Holcombe
says.
"All of those have been created and approved by the State Board of Education because there are great needs in Florida - employment needs - for these people."
He adds the plan is not just for parents. Anyone who has an interest in seeing someone get through college without a lot of debt can contribute to a prepaid account for them.