MEFA's Associate Director of College Planning and Content Creation Jonathan Hughes explains how the Attainable^® Saving's Plan works, how much individuals can save, and what constitutes a qualified expense.

We all know that college is a significant expense for students and their families. But there are so many action steps that students can take, starting as early as middle school, to help them reduce their postsecondary costs and make the best financial decision for themselves and their family. Within this MassEdCO Fall Forum, an expert panel walk through the college planning process from middle school through college graduation and touch on the critical decision points for students and how to navigate them wisely. Panelists discuss using career aspirations to help inform college selection, which data is truly important in the college search, key programs that lower college costs, navigating college spending and budgeting, loans, and so much more. Panelists include Mark Bilotta, CEO of MassEdCO, Apelila Joseph, MEFA Pathway Program Manager, Ebony Marsala, Director of Financial Aid at Boston College, Tim Poynton, Associate Professor at UMass Boston, and Bill Smith, Assistant Vice President of Student Financial Assistance at Stonehill College.

Learn how MEFA Pathway, MEFA’s free college and career planning portal, can help students find available scholarships, build a list of scholarships, and manage deadlines and awards. Also learn how to add Local Scholarships to the Counselor Portal for students to view and apply.

Learn how students can use MEFA Pathway's College Cost Calculator to compare their balance due at each college after financial aid has been applied. Students will learn how much each college will cost both annually and over 4 years.

MEFA's Associate Director of College Planning Jonathan Hughes explains the similarities and differences between Early Action and Early Decision and provides some tips to help guide you through the early admission process.

Scholarships are types of "gift aid" or free money, which means they do not have to be repaid. MEFA's Associate Director of College Planning Jonathan Hughes explains where to find both local and national scholarships and helpful tips to use in your search.

MEFA's Associate Director of College Planning and Content Creation Jonathan Hughes explains where to find a student loan to pay for college, how you can determine how much to borrow, and what to consider when selecting the loan.

Did you know you can create a personal college savings strategy for your family with MEFA's College Planning Tool? MEFA's Associate Director of College Planning and Content Creation Jonathan Hughes explains how you can use the tool to project your future college savings, receive step-by-step guidance, and discover colleges and scholarships.

As the Massachusetts prepaid tuition program, the U.Plan offers a way to save for college while protecting yourself from rising costs by locking in today's tuition and mandatory fee costs at a network of colleges and universities in Massachusetts. MEFA's Associate Director of College Planning Jonathan Hughes explains how the U.Plan works, how the money is invested, and how you can get started saving for college today!

If you’ve seen the terms subsidized and unsubsidized on your financial aid offers from colleges, you may be wondering what the difference is between these types of student loans. MEFA's Associate Director of College Planning Jonathan Hughes explains what these loans have in common, as well as how they differ when it comes to accruing interest.