Local News

Actions

Programs available to help Nevada students pay for college

Posted at 7:55 AM, Aug 28, 2018
and last updated 2018-08-28 10:56:59-04

Not to be a downer your first week of classes, but have you thought about how you're paying for college?
 
This is the first week of classes for UNLV and several southern Nevada college campuses and student loan debt just hit a new milestone: $1.5 trillion in America. About $9.2 billion of that is right here in the valley. You could buy the new Raiders stadium for that kind of money.

With or without a degree this is something that could affect everyone.

"If we can't pay that debt off, then that's a vacuum that occurs in our economic system and the whole economic system suffers from that," said Tom McFie, a financial specialist.

If you're heading to class soon, try to find a company that helps pay for school. You might not even need a traditional 4-year degree, maybe trade school or community college.

If you've got a few years before move-in day you've got more options. Parents can set up a life insurance policy and after paying into it for a while they can borrow from it. These loans are tax free and don't require a credit check, but you need a permanent life insurance policy to do this and the premiums are much higher this way.

RELATED LINKS

PrepaidTuition Program
Nevada College Savings Plan
Specific scholarships for Nevada students

 Just living in Nevada gives us several choices. You can lock in the price of tuition and set up special savings accounts thanks to options provided by the state.

It pays to figure this stuff out early.

"It's not unusual for us to find people in their fifties on $250-400,000 in student loans and they never spent that much going to college," said McFie.

McFie warns parents not to borrow from 401(k) plans because you can always borrow for school; you can't borrow for retirement.