Building Blocks for Financial Success
What can you do to prepare your future student and your family for financial success?
Teach the financial basics:
- Teach your child the importance of establishing a budget
- Have your child set up and use a bank account
- Teach your child the consequences of not paying an outstanding bill
- Have your child learn to use credit responsibly
- Have your child find a part-time job
Your student can arrive for their first Fall semester with the money in hand to buy their books. They will not have to depend on the timing of financial aid, can borrow fewer loans, and have less money to pay back later.
What can the parent do to prepare?
Many students and/or parents will have to seek out educational loans to help cover expenses not covered by institutional and federal financial aid.
Come to college with a financial plan and be prepared to finance your child’s education:
- Start saving for your child’s college as soon as possible
- Check your credit score:
- This is recommended to do on a yearly basis
- You can resolve any mistakes that appear on the report
- You can work to improve your credit score which will help in securing future educational loans
- Determine if you will be the borrower of the loans (Parent PLUS) or you will co-sign on a loan (private alternative loan) for your student.
- Learn the credit requirements to borrow a parent PLUS loan or a Private Loan
What can you do if you have credit issues?
Eligibility for a Parent PLUS Loan does not depend on the borrower’s credit scores or debt-to-income ratios, therefore, they can be easier to secure.
However, the borrower of a Parent PLUS Loan must not have an adverse credit history.
What is considered an adverse credit history:
- A current delinquency of 90 or more days on more than $2,085 in total debt; or
- More than $2,085 in total debt in collections or charged off in the past two years (before the date of the credit report); or
- Default, bankruptcy discharge, foreclosure, repossession, tax lien, wage garnishment, or write-off of federal student loan debt in the past five years (before the date of the credit report)
If a parent has an adverse credit history, the parent can still borrow from the Parent PLUS Loan program if they can submit a successful appeal for an exceptional circumstance, or with an endorser (cosigner) who does not have an adverse credit history. Secure a relative or friend who would be willing to be your credit-worthy co-signer if you are unable to appeal your denial.
Familiarize yourself with our costs
Student Tuition Calculators: