Using College Cost Calculators

college cost calculators

With many students overburdened with debt after graduation and parents stretching to pay for college beyond their ability to repay, it makes sense to plan ahead and know your options before making a decision about college. The College Board at FinAid.org provides parents and students with several different college cost calculators to help families plan for college costs.

The three most commonly used calculators are as follows:

College Cost Projector

Since college costs increase at about twice the inflation rate, this calculator helps project how much college will cost when you are ready to enroll. In order to calculate the costs, you would enter the current costs of attendance and the number of years until attendance. The calculator then projects the estimated cost.

EFC (Expected Family Contribution) Calculator

This form is used to calculate the financial need which is used by colleges to determine the financial aid package. It calculates the need for a single year and helps you know in advance the amount colleges will expect you to pay toward your college education. This figure will also determine the amount of financial aid you receive.

Loan Repayment Calculator

This calculator computes an estimate of the size of your monthly loan payments and the annual salary required to manage them. Students should always calculate the loan repayment amounts before taking on loans that they are unable to repay upon graduation. Once calculated, this tool gives you an estimated annual salary needed to afford repayment.

FinAid.org also offers many more calculators that can help you plan and budget for college. Here’s the extensive list with links:

Costs

Savings

Integrated Saving/Borrowing

Trust Funds

Needs Analysis

Loans

The Loan Discount Analyzer combines, enhances and replaces the Loan Analyzer and the Loan Discounts.

Loan Default

Peer-to-Peer Loans

Budgeting

Award Letter Comparison

Insurance

(Privacy guarantee: None of the information you enter in these calculators will be saved, and no record of your sessions will be stored anywhere.)

It is always wise to know your college costs before you make a college choice. Knowing these figures also helps you when evaluating financial aid packages and comparing the various offers from the colleges you are considering.

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