| Introduction: College is big business and an uneducated consumer is its best customer | p. ix |
| Understanding the Process | p. 1 |
| Overview | p. 3 |
| Paying for college in a nutshell | |
| How to Take Control of the Process | p. 11 |
| Long-Term Strategies for Paying for College | p. 15 |
| Short-Term Strategies for Receiving More Financial Aid | p. 43 |
| Financial aid and your income tax return--Joined at the hip | |
| Income | |
| Expenses | |
| Assets and liabilities | |
| Student assets and liabilities | |
| How to Pick Colleges | p. 111 |
| The financial safety school | |
| What the Student Can Do | p. 121 |
| The better your child's grades, the more they'll want her | |
| State Aid | p. 127 |
| Making the differences in the state aid formula work for you | |
| Listing of state addresses | |
| Looking for a Financial Aid Consulting Service | p. 137 |
| Why your accountant will say he is willing to do the forms and why you shouldn't let him | |
| Filling Out the Standardized Forms | p. 141 |
| Line-by-line instructions for the most commonly used need analysis forms | |
| The Offer | p. 193 |
| Comparing offers, the different types of aid in detail, understanding your FAO, bargaining, applying for next year | |
| Innovative Payment Options | p. 215 |
| Some of the novel ways parents are paying for college | |
| Special Topics | p. 223 |
| Divorced or Separated Parents | |
| Transfer Students and Graduate Students | |
| The College's Special Needs--Geniuses, Minorities, Athletes, and Legacies | |
| Running Your Own Business or Farm | |
| The Recently Unemployed Worker | |
| Independent Students | |
| Establishing Residency in a State | |
| Early Decision, Early Action, Early Notification, Early Read | |
| Aid for the Older Student | |
| International Students | |
| Foreign Tax Return | |
| Study Abroad | |
| To the Professional | |
| Managing Your Debt | p. 245 |
| Less Taxing Matters | p. 253 |
| Future Trends | p. 261 |
| Worksheets and Forms | p. 265 |
| Sample Forms | p. 291 |
| Glossary | p. 307 |
| About the Authors | p. 313 |
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