> our financial advisor recommended $350k in case we wanted a private college That's too much cash for an undergrad education, and the payback is often not the

> our financial advisor recommended $350k in case we wanted a private college That's too much cash for an undergrad education, and the payback is often not there. Here are some other options: * Canadian universities -- similar quality of education to most U.S. state universities at a significantly lower cost. Close to home (cheap airfares, or within driving distance for most U.S. states), culture is similar, education system is very similar to U.S. * Continental European universities -- free or close to free in many countries, plus your kid gets to have a study abroad experience in Europe at no extra cost. Many colleges in Germany for instance have instruction in English nowadays so there's not even a need to learn a foreign language (well, one should but one doesn't have to). The downside is the style of education in Europe tends to be very hands-off and less pedagogical (sink-or-swim), so if your kid isn't that independent they're not likely to survive. The only things to take care of: * Make sure your kid does summer internships in the U.S. if they want to get hired in the U.S. Studying abroad means losing the U.S. network, but that is remedied by summer internships. * FAFSA -- most Canadian schools as well as schools abroad are FAFSA eligible. For me, a U.S. education is only worth it if you're going to a top U.S. school. Otherwise education abroad can be as good as (and in many cases, superior to) the average U.S. college.