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One strategy is to abandon the East and West coasts, where the competition is keenest. Michael McPherson, president of Macalester College in Minnesota and co-author of The Student Aid Game, notes that "the majority of schools that have trouble filling their seats are regional." But they'll use money to attract exceptional students from outside their region, who in turn will attract similar students from back home. It is every college's dream, says McPherson, to attract "exceptionally bright and wealthy" students who come not only with the brains but also with the money to pay full tuition. A little aid here and there for the bright ones, the theory goes, and some wealthy ones will eventually follow.
Although many high school kids lock in on one college as their dream destination, it often pays--literally--to be flexible. Joel Kwamena Abraham of Santa Cruz, Calif., had already been accepted by schools he liked when Howard University urged him to apply. He was reluctant to trade the sunshine and easygoing atmosphere of the Pacific Coast for Washington--until he was offered a full scholarship, with a laptop computer thrown in, to attend Howard. He decided he was ready to try something new. "Money definitely played a major part" in his change of heart, he admits, but it paid off. He has found a school that's a good academic fit for him, with a supportive faculty. Last spring he was invited to dinner with members of Howard's board of trustees. Now a junior, he says, "I know I made the right choice."
State colleges and universities offer lower, subsidized tuitions for a reason: they want their sons and daughters to stay within their borders, prosper and contribute. In fact, 80% of all college students attend state schools. Don't overlook what they have to offer. Kathleen and John Firchau have four children--two in college already, two in high school with plans to attend college--and a household income of just $53,000. The family would be hip-deep in debt if all the kids ended up in private school. But Dennis, a senior at Michigan State, and Katie, a sophomore at Central Michigan University, have so far required a total of less than $4,000 in student loans, a relatively manageable sum thanks to the low costs for in-state students at Michigan's public schools, federal and state aid for Katie, and a scholarship Dennis earned from his high school job as a caddy.
Then there is sister Bridget, a high school senior, who is wavering between distant private and public schools, and local state schools. Cost, predicts mother Kathleen, "will play a very large role" in determining which college she attends. "You can get a good education at the schools in your state, so you have to weigh it out."
THE MIDDLE YEARS
If your child is between nine and 14, you've got more time to prepare, but there are clear-cut investment strategies you should implement now.
Stay in equities, recommends Satovsky. But start shifting part of your long-term college savings from riskier stock funds to safer investments, like a balanced mutual fund that invests in a mix of stocks and bonds. "If you have enough for school right now, and you move it all to only fixed-income, it's likely that college costs are going to outpace your portfolio," says Satovsky.