The Money Fit Show · Season 1, Episode 4
The Most Important Financial Conversations for College Students
Paying for college involves more than deciding whether to borrow. Janelle Culley joins Todd Christensen to talk through FAFSA, budgeting, grants, work-study, student loans, and the financial questions students should understand before committing to education costs.
Financial conversations to have before and during college
Play Season 1, Episode 4 directly through Spotify without leaving Money Fit.
College financing starts before the student loan application
Janelle Culley works with traditional and non-traditional students through the TRIO Educational Opportunity Center. In this conversation, she and Todd look at some of the financial decisions that can shape the cost of education long after a student leaves school.
The discussion starts with the broader funding picture. Student loans may be one part of paying for college, but FAFSA, Pell Grants, scholarships, work-study, and other resources can affect how much a student ultimately needs to borrow.
They also discuss something that is easy to overlook while concentrating on tuition: the student's actual budget. Housing, transportation, food, supplies, and the income available during school all matter when deciding what level of education expense is realistic.
Five financial questions students should understand
- The different funding resources students can explore before relying entirely on student loans.
- Why completing the FAFSA can be an important part of understanding available federal student aid.
- Building a student budget that considers more than tuition and school fees.
- The distinction discussed in the episode between subsidized and unsubsidized federal student loans.
- Using projected earnings and post-education expenses to think more carefully about how education costs may fit into life after school.
Start with the cost of the whole decision
Tuition is only one number. A useful college financial plan also considers living expenses, available aid, income during school, the amount that may need to be borrowed, and what repayment could look like alongside ordinary expenses after graduation.
College planning and student aid resources
Janelle shared several resources students can use while researching financial aid, education options, and possible earnings after school.
Janelle Culley
At the time of this episode, Janelle Culley was a program manager with the TRIO Educational Opportunity Center. Her work included helping traditional and non-traditional students understand education options and some of the financial decisions involved in starting or returning to college.
The episode notes also provided the TRIO EOC Boise contact number at 208-364-9925 and email address at [email protected].
