Just like everything else the cost of college education has gone up significantly. Average tuition increases of more than 6% a year are commonplace today. Just as one example, in 1973 the price of registration at UCLA (University of California, Los Angeles) was round about $200 a quarter and now it is well over $2,000 a quarter.

This tenfold increase is not at all unusual and lots of things now cost ten times more than they cost 25 years ago. Wages, on the other hand have increased approximately three times in this same period from about $15,000 - $30,000 a year to approximately $39,000 - $42,000 a year. These figures vary according to age, gender and a great deal more but as a rough guide a threefold increase is just about right.

Luckily for the good news. There are many more types of financial aid available now to students and parents than ever before. Financial aid, as its name suggests, is money which parents and students get from scholarships, loans and grants issued by Federal and private lenders to assist students in paying for their college education.

Previously, students could depend almost completely on Stafford loans and Pell grants to finance their education costs and college living expenses. These days Pell grants are still issued but they're needs based and meet a very small proportion of college costs today. Stafford loans are similarly needs based but can range from 25% to 40% of the average cost of college these days. Another type of aid is Perkins loans which are similar to Stafford loans but which are issued only to particularly low income families.

Luckily, PLUS loans are also available today and these loans were not an option a few years ago. PLUS loans are given to parents and not students to assist parents in paying for their child's college education. Interest rates on PLUS loans are average and there are some restrictions and fees levied but they often form part of the student's total package of college funding.

A word to the wise about fees. Most loans are for a specific amount of money like $6,000 a year to be disbursed in several payments (usually one payment each semester). But it is not uncommon for fees of up to 4% to be deducted from that amount before the funds are distributed. This 4% fee on your $6,000 equals $240 which you will not see but which you have to repay. When you are looking for a loan ensure that you do your homework and try to find a low-fee or no-fee loan.

Though Federal loan programs like the subsidized Stafford loan program carry low fees and interest is paid by the government, they are not the only type of financial aid today and are not necessarily the best choice.

Meeting the cost of a college education today is a complicated undertaking and the majority of students will need to assemble a funding package which includes grants, scholarships, Federal loans and private borrowing.

Fortunately, there are now many more sources of finance available than ever before and competition in the open market between private financial institutions in particular means that it is possible to find funds at a price which will not necessarily run you into unmanageable debt.

It is also fortunate that you live in an age where getting hold of the information which you need to make sensible decisions about the choices available to you is also fairly simple.