Saving and Planning for Post-Secondary Education is a Team Sport
The way I see it, we as parents are the coaches, trainers and managers of the team, and our kids are the players.
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Each member of the team has a role and responsibilities in preparing, planning and saving for post-secondary education. Education is expensive, and saving for that expense should start early.
Contributing to an RESP for your child is a great way to save your child's education.
But in order for our kids to truly understand the value of money and education we need them to take an active role in saving, paying and planning for their education costs.
Middle School is a great time for "Team Education" to start writing the education play book. Below are some exercises and links to resources to help prepare your team for the big game of life.
- Dream Job Research Assignment: Have your child pick 3 careers or areas of interest and research what is required to do that job including: education, institutions offering program, acceptance requirements, and cost of program.
- The Cost of Living: How much money will you child need for school and living expenses. Tools such as RESP calculators, student budget calculators, and budgeting tools can help you figure it out. Get your kids to do The Money Belt on-line budgeting exercise to get a realistic idea of the actual cost of living away from home.
- Show Me The Money: Besides the RESP savings the coaches are contributing, where will the other funds from. Another research assignment: Have your child research what funding options are available (scholarships, loans, part-time jobs, summer employment, ScotiaBank Awards, Bursaries, and more). Don't forget putting Birthday money or a portion of any cash gift into education savings really adds up over the years.
These exercises are a great way for both you and your child to clarify and manage the expectations each of you have in regards to post-secondary education funding, and focus your education plan.
LINKS TO RESOURCES:
Yep, just me Cathy thinking out loud about planning and saving for education costs.
Note: I received compensation for sharing my ideas on planning, preparing and saving for post-secondary education. All opinions are my own.
My parents paid for my education and I hope to do the same for my kids with the help of an RESP. It really pays to save!
ReplyDeleteBesos Sarah.