Higher education expenses continue to soar, worrying parents whose children are now winding their way through college. Talk to parents of children who are several years away from college and you can see the panic on their faces — costs are skyrocketing at a pace much higher than the rate of inflation and when you add in higher gas prices, surging food prices, and a litany of other increases, paying for college seems impossible.

529 College Savings Plans have helped many families begin to accumulate the money needed to pay for college education. For most families, 529 plans will not be enough as they’ll still have to hope for scholarships, grants, and loans to cover their remaining expenses.

Texas Leads The Way

Some states, however, are doing what they can to help families out with Texas leading the way by allowing parents to prepay college tuition, even if their child is years away from attending school.

The Texas Tuition Promise Fund allows families to lock in current tuition and required fees as public colleges in Texas. Specifically, the fund allows participants to:

• Protect themselves from rising college costs.

• Help fund their child’s attendance at any accredited public and private junior/community as well as 4-year colleges and universities throughout the country.

• Choose from a variety of saving and payment options.

Quoting Texas Comptroller Susan Combs, “The Texas Tuition Promise Fund gives families an exciting, flexible way to save for college that makes sense for their financial situation and higher education goals. You can prepay for a four-year degree, or you can prepay in small bites — for just a few classes or semesters. And, best of all, you don’t have to worry about future tuition increases, because you lock in current prices.”

Enrollment Now Under Way

Enrollment for the Texas plan has already begun and will continue through February 28, 2009. Parents of a newborn who want to provide funding for their child to go to community college, will only have to pay $15.16 per month through high school. Other plans cover the full cost of college at a Texas public university for one, two, three, or four years. Whatever plan parents choose will cover all costs regardless how much tuition and fees increase over the ensuing years.

Further Information

Texas Tuition Promise Fund

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Adv. — Have you set up a 529 College Savings Plan for your child yet? If not, you’ll want to do so today. Read about college savings plans, college scholarships, grant money, and other financial aid options available to help cover current and future college costs. Start early and you can save big; ensure that your children have everything they need to succeed in life.

Tags: 529 College Savings Plans, college costs, college scholarships, financial aid, Texas, Texas Tuition Promise Fund

Forbes magazine runs an annual report called, Best Cities For College Grads, where they track current job opportunities for recent college graduates. This year’s report is in and graduates are being urged to move to Texas where three cities — Houston, Dallas, and Austin — finished 1, 2, & 3.

The Forbes survey isn’t comprehensive as only the 40 largest metropolitan areas in the country are covered, then again those same areas are usually where college graduates are drawn to when following job opportunities.

Besides the top metro areas, the Forbes survey researched average starting salaries with information gleaned from Payscale.com; the cost of living for each area from the Council for Community and Economic Research; the percentage of adult population with college degrees; the percent of population in their 20s from the U.S. Census’s 2006 American Communities Survey; and expected 2008 job-growth figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Forbes gave double the weight to the starting-salary and job-growth figures, two of the biggest draws for young, job-seeking adults.

The extra emphasis on salary reveals a growing burden faced by today’s new graduates — according to the report, the average student loan debt is $19,000 and those areas of the country afford the best opportunity for young people to reduce that burden the quickest.

Other southern cities making the list include Atlanta, Charlotte, and Raleigh with Denver, Seattle, Washington, DC, and San Francisco, all finishing in the top 10. The latter two, although the most expensive to live, offer high starting wages which in the Bay City’s case averages $48,900. For all of the other top cities, starting pay was in the upper 30s to low 40s for grads.

Two intangibles were not included  — climate and family-friendliness — which can be a deciding factor for grads who might be considering a permanent relocation. Once you experience a few summers of hot Texas nights (never mind the days) you might long for a cooler clime and decide to chuck the oppressive heat along with the plum job market.

Best Cities For College Grads

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Adv. — The next academic year is six weeks away. Do you have your college funding in place? Visit OfftoCollege.com to find the financial aid tools you need.

Tags: Austin, college grads, college jobs, Dallas, Houston, new grads, Texas