My DS is a hs senior so we are looking at all of this right now.
Someone mentioned having a good gpa would help get merit aid- scholarship money. We have been finding that gpa is important, but ACT/SAT score is even more important. Many schools list on their website scholarship money available and you can look at charts with gpa and testing scores to get an idea of merit aid (money that you don't have to pay back!) that your student could qualify for. My DS scored a 32 on his ACT the 2nd time he took it and this has really opened up merit aid opportunities for him. I had dd take the ACT and SAT last year when she was a sophomore so we could see how she scored. If we had been unhappy with her scores, I would have bought prep books or perhaps even signed her up for a test prep program. Often this type of scholarship is renewable each undergrad year if the student achieves a certain GPA.
I also purchased the book "Paying for College without going Broke". It really explains the FAFSA and gives tips how to maximize aid eligibility. This book would really help you with an 8th grader because it gives long and short term strategies. According to this book colleges will assess parental assets at a top rate of 5.65% and parental income will be assessed up to 47%. Your child's income will be assessed up to 50% and your child's assets will be assessed at 20%. You cannot "hide" the income your child makes (well any reported to the IRS) but some suggest putting any assets in the parents' names.
Edited to add that i just read in my book that the first $4500 in students after-tax income is sheltered for a dependent student for schools that use the FAFSA. With the profile there is no income protection allowance.
Something else helpful I have learned- some families have been focusing on building emergency funds with 6-12 months of income covered in the account. At the same time they might have $6000 in credit card debt. When you fill out your FAFSA they will look at the emergency fund but they don't take into account that you have to make payments on credit card debt. ADVICE: get rid of your credit card debt before your child's senior year of college.
Our son is a senior so we will fill out the FAFSA in January. We currently have $10,000 set aside for a new roof. We need to get that new roof put on and paid for before the end of the calendar year so that money won't count as an asset for us.
Sorry this is so long but hopefully you will find something helpful in it. My information is for schools that use the FAFSA only. Profile schools are different but are covered in the book that I mentioned. It is great that you are thinking about this now!
Someone mentioned having a good gpa would help get merit aid- scholarship money. We have been finding that gpa is important, but ACT/SAT score is even more important. Many schools list on their website scholarship money available and you can look at charts with gpa and testing scores to get an idea of merit aid (money that you don't have to pay back!) that your student could qualify for. My DS scored a 32 on his ACT the 2nd time he took it and this has really opened up merit aid opportunities for him. I had dd take the ACT and SAT last year when she was a sophomore so we could see how she scored. If we had been unhappy with her scores, I would have bought prep books or perhaps even signed her up for a test prep program. Often this type of scholarship is renewable each undergrad year if the student achieves a certain GPA.
I also purchased the book "Paying for College without going Broke". It really explains the FAFSA and gives tips how to maximize aid eligibility. This book would really help you with an 8th grader because it gives long and short term strategies. According to this book colleges will assess parental assets at a top rate of 5.65% and parental income will be assessed up to 47%. Your child's income will be assessed up to 50% and your child's assets will be assessed at 20%. You cannot "hide" the income your child makes (well any reported to the IRS) but some suggest putting any assets in the parents' names.
Edited to add that i just read in my book that the first $4500 in students after-tax income is sheltered for a dependent student for schools that use the FAFSA. With the profile there is no income protection allowance.
Something else helpful I have learned- some families have been focusing on building emergency funds with 6-12 months of income covered in the account. At the same time they might have $6000 in credit card debt. When you fill out your FAFSA they will look at the emergency fund but they don't take into account that you have to make payments on credit card debt. ADVICE: get rid of your credit card debt before your child's senior year of college.
Our son is a senior so we will fill out the FAFSA in January. We currently have $10,000 set aside for a new roof. We need to get that new roof put on and paid for before the end of the calendar year so that money won't count as an asset for us.
Sorry this is so long but hopefully you will find something helpful in it. My information is for schools that use the FAFSA only. Profile schools are different but are covered in the book that I mentioned. It is great that you are thinking about this now!
