Who Pays For College?
Earlier this year, Jon and I conducted a break-out session on “Raising Responsible Children In An Affluent Environment”at a conference sponsored by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.   During the Q&A session at the end of the presentation, one of the attendees raised the issue of kids graduating from college or graduate school owing many thousands of dollars in student loans.  Should parents pay for their children’s college educations or tell them to get student loans? What did we think?
In a vacuum, the issues surrounding how parents choose to finance their children’s college education would seem to be entirely financial in nature. In reality, the choices are modeling values and sending important messages to college age children. As Sue Shellenbarger pointed out in the May 12, 2006 issue of the Wall Street Journal: “Do student loans teach responsibility — or foster a lifelong overreliance on debt?  Are parents who pay their kids’ way through college modeling self-sufficiency — or martyrdom?  Does requiring a student to get a job during the academic year instill a work ethic — or workaholism?” What do you think? Eileen
Add comment August 14th, 2006
