This article is sponsored by College Ave Student Loans, dedicated to helping students and families pay for higher education.

Teaching your teenager how to manage their finances and build credit can be challenging, but those are important lessons to impart before sending them off to college. To assist you, we asked parents in our Paying for College 101 Facebook Community to reveal their best strategies for building financial success.

Before your student can start to build credit, they need to u

Peer colleges are institutions of higher education that are deemed comparable to each other based on specific criteria. These criteria may include factors such as mission, size, academic programs, public or private, student demographics, faculty profile, research output, or geographical location.

By identifying peer institutions, schools can establish connections with others that face similar challenges and have similar aspirations. Peer networks can include a wide range of schools, from small

This article is sponsored by College Ave Student Loans, dedicated to helping students and families pay for higher education.

One of the most important steps to take before researching and applying to colleges is to determine your family’s college budget. Why? You don’t want your student to fall in love with a school that’s too expensive for them to attend.

We asked parents in our Paying for College 101 Facebook group about their own experiences with coming up with a budget and sticking to it.

There are two main financial aid forms: the FAFSA, which stands for Free Application for Federal Student Aid, and the CSS Profile, which stands for College Scholarship Service Profile. The two forms have similarities and differences. It’s important for families to know what each financial aid form is used for before filling and submitting them.

The FAFSA is used for federal financial aid, such as Pell Grants, Direct Student Loans, Parent Plus Loans, and work-study programs. This is the most com

Junior year of high school is an important time for students in the college admissions process. Use our college planning checklist for 11th grade to navigate the journey and help your student prepare now—there’s still time to impact their future and find a school they can get into and you can afford.

Make sure you review our College Planning Checklist for 9th and 10th Grade—the suggestions are still relevant for junior year.
• Talk about college with your student. This is the year to have a rea

Loans can help students cover college funding gaps. If your student has already accepted all scholarship and grant opportunities and still needs a loan, sit down together and review this important student loan advice.

1. Before taking out a private loan, maximize your full federal loan eligibility.

Federal Student Loans have low fixed rates and more flexible repayment plans. They can also be taken out without a cosigner. We always recommend using your full federal eligibility before considerin

What Is a Cosigner on a Private Student Loan?

A cosigner is someone who signs the private loan along with the student borrower. They’re legally obligated to repay the loan if the student fails to make payments. Anyone who is willing to can cosign a private loan (parents, grandparents, other relatives, close friends). Typically, the better the cosigner’s credit, the lower the interest rate for the loan.

When Is a Cosigner Required on a Private Student Loan?

A cosigner is usually required on a