How to afford college: a class for parents

A free preview

Saving money for yourself, let alone your kid can be intimidating

We've got you, mama. Eryn will walk you through every detail of saving for college, so you can walk away confident and empowered

Get started now

This class will focus on:

  • Exercises to get you and your partner on the same page about WHAT you’re saving for (Tuition only? Public versus private?)

  • A detailed overview of the difference between different education savings accounts

  • A review of common investing options within a 529 and what they mean

  • A live example of Eryn opening up a 529 account including which buttons to press

  • How to find the link so your friends / family can contribute to your 529

Having a baby comes with
so many financial questions

How much should I save for college? How does saving for college impact access to financial aid and scholarships? What type of account should I open up to save? I’ve heard of a 529. Should I go with my states or another state’s plan? What happens if my child does not go to college? Eryn will answer all of these questions and more.

Bonus material

In addition to Eryn's *amazing* step-by-step videos and modules, you'll also have access to...

  • Personal Excel exercises and workbooks

    • Calculate how much you need to save for college by month or year depending on the age of your child or children and your savings goals.

    • Determine your Education Savings Philosophy. What are we saving for? (Public versus Private University? Room and board or just tuition?)

  • Quizzes!

    • What happens to the funds in a 529 plan if your
    child does not go to college?

    • When investing in a 529 are you guaranteed a specific rate of return?

    • When should you choose a 529 offered by your state?

FAQ

  • Should I take this class if I'm not sure if I'm ready to save for college?

    If you have high-interest debt like credit card debt or if you're just starting to build an emergency fund or save for retirement, saving for college is probably NOT the right next step for you.

    While we all want to give our children the most opportunity possible, if we don't take care of our own financial health, we can become a burden to our children in the future. Like they tell you on the airplane, put on your oxygen mask, aka build your own strong financial foundation, before you focus on theirs.

  • What's the time commitment and what is included?

    This course includes two recorded modules. The first class is ~37 minutes in length and the second class is ~15 minutes. This course also includes 2 Excel exercises to help you determine your education savings philosophy (aka WHAT you're saving for) and the calculate how much you need to save for college each month.

    Outside of the class recordings, the homework should take ~1 hour but may involve a longer conversation with your partner or community as you think through what you want to save for and how saving for college trades off with other financial goals you may be working on.

  • How much does class cost?

    The saving for college class costs $59. If you would invest this in a workout class or a nice dinner out, why wouldn't you show your financial life the same love? We promise this class will have a higher ROI! Plus, we offer a 30-day satisfaction guarantee. If you're not happy and you let us know within 30-days, we will give you your money back. We have never had anyone ask for a refund on one of our classes!

  • If we have already started saving for college, will this course still add value?

    If you have already started saving for college, but you're not sure that you're saving enough OR if you're approaching your investments the right way, this class is for you. We will walk through a calculator that helps you estimate how much you need to save for college toggling a few key variables. We will also walk through the investment options available in a 529 and how to weigh the risk / reward profile of different options depending upon the age of your child.

  • Do you offer closed-captioning?

    Yes, all of the videos in class come with closed-captioning so you can follow along more easily.

  • Do you offer an audio-only version of the class?

    While we recommend that you watch the video portion of module 2 (which buttons to press when opening up a 529), both courses can be streamed on your phone and you can listen to audio only while you're on the go. You can then go back and rewatch relevant sections with video as you have questions or want to see the numbers in front of you!

Meet the instructor

MBA

Eryn Schultz

Eryn Schultz is the founder of Her Personal Finance. In 2015, she graduated from Harvard Business School, and realized that her and her classmates were better equipped to manage a corporate balance sheet than their own finances. Through her online classes, she has helped hundreds of women decide how to balance paying off student loans with saving for retirement, figure out how much cash to keep on hand, and finally feel confident investing outside of a 401K. As Eryn started the process of becoming a mom, her son was born in June 2022, she wanted to create more content to help other parents navigate big financial decisions like saving for college. Eryn has spoken to women's groups at Amazon, Mass General Hospital, Harvard Business School, and Kellogg Business School, and you can see some of her work that has been featured on CNBC, Real Simple, and NPR here.

What mamas are saying

★★★★★

  • Seeing you walk through the process helped to demystify it

    "I tend to be intimidated with opening accounts and will put that off until the last minute possible, so seeing you walk through the process helped to demystify it and make it seem as easy as it truly is."
    Amanda