Happy 2023! Last year I made a New Year’s Resolution and kept it. That makes me a self-appointed expert on New Year’s resolutions. Here are some resolutions for parents planning for college— and my expert advice on how to keep your resolutions.

I write a lot about the FAFSA, but there’s a second financial aid form that’s also important: the CSS Profile. While all schools use the FAFSA to allocate federal funds such as Direct Student Loans, a subset of schools– primarily private schools– use the CSS Profile in their financial aid calculations. There are a few key differences between the two forms.

Getting an estimate of your Expected Family Contribution is really helpful, and it's pretty easy. The Department of Education's unfortunately-named Student Aid Estimator will calculate the FAFSA's EFC for you with a few data inputs; the College Board offers one for the CSS Profile.

If you’re a financial advisor, it’s hard to go an hour without talking about I Bonds right now. It seems the word is getting out to the general public now too.

A contribution to your child’s 529 account is, according to the IRS, a gift to your child. This means that it’s subject to annual gift limits: any individual can gift another individual $15,000 in 2021 without reporting it anywhere or paying any taxes on it. In 2022, the limit– or exclusion amount– goes up to $16,000.

Families of college-bound students are always looking for strategies to manage their Expected Family Contribution, and I’m happy to oblige. However, lowering your EFC is no guarantee of getting financial aid. And that’s why net cost is important.

Filing the FAFSA raises tons of questions for divorced parents. Here are some answers.

I had a great time talking college applications, financial aid and scholarships on the 52 Pearls Weekly Money Wisdom podcast. Listen and learn here.

The FAFSA isn’t the only financial aid form; many students and families also need to complete the CSS Profile. The Profile is used by about 400 mostly private colleges and universities.

The college rankings are here! Right in time for students to apply to the best colleges! But wait, which college is best? US News & World Report says Princeton is the best university but Forbes says UC Berkeley is best.

Happy FAFSA Day! Are you completing the FAFSA for the first time this year? While you’re waiting for the site to load, here are some resources that will help you get through it with a minimum of chaos and maximum of financial aid.

It is both a blessing and a curse that the Common App makes it easy to apply to many colleges. One of the curses is that applications cost money. Enough that you should budget for them. The good news is that having a money budget for applications will automatically create a “time budget” since it might reduce the number of applications you file.

Learn How to Complete the FAFSA in this video - instructions for how to do it and what to do before you file.

I think Oregon is one of the last places in the US that starts school after Labor Day so my apologies if you’re no longer in back-to-school mode. Here are some resolutions your family might make for the coming school year. And, here’s hoping they don’t get broken as quickly as the typical New Year’s diet-and-exercise resolutions!

I had a great time talking financial aid and FAFSA strategies on the Hack Your Wealth podcast this week. Check it out here.