Most Chinese parents will support their children in pursuing higher education, whether it’s obtaining a bachelor’s, master’s, or even a doctoral degree. In addition to focusing on their academic performance, extracurricular activities, leadership, and teamwork skills, early financial planning is also essential. This not only allows children to attend the university they desire but also helps save money and reduce financial burdens.
On February 4th, the Orange Public Library History Center in Orange County held a seminar titled “How to Pay for College Tuition Without Going Bankrupt”, where university planning expert Brian Safdari gave a presentation.
Safdari mentioned that college tuition has been steadily increasing since 1980, with an average rise of 6% to 10% per year. The annual tuition for California State University (CSU) ranges from $30,000 to $35,000, and CSU has announced a 6% annual tuition increase for the next five years. The University of California (UC) charges around $40,000 to $45,000 per year, while private universities can cost over $50,000, with some exceeding $100,000, and these are just tuition fees. Therefore, attending a community college for two years before transferring to a university can help save some money.
Some families start saving for their children’s college education from the time they are born until they turn 18. Safdari emphasized the importance of understanding the financial aid system if you have college savings, mutual funds, or other assets. Schools have a separate system where they want to reward individuals who can bring returns, hoping the students will donate to the school after graduation. Therefore, both low and high-income families may be eligible for scholarships. Academic scholarships are usually based on grades, GPA, and SAT scores.
To maximize financial aid, advance planning is necessary. For example, if you plan to apply for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) in 2026, you’ll need to prepare your tax returns for 2024 and 2025 as the application deadline is March 2nd every year. Financial aid is distributed on a first-come, first-served basis, so students should start applying as early as October or November after applying to colleges, and the application is free. Safdari mentioned the FAFSA form has over a hundred questions, with a high rate of errors, which caused him to lose eligibility in the past.
Another financial aid form is the College Scholarship Service (CSS) form available on collegework.org. This online service requires around 270 questions to be answered, and some private colleges may require additional documentation besides these two forms. Safdari highlighted a common mistake made by high-income families when applying for aid, using their total income instead of adjusted assets.
When applying for financial aid, the Expected Family Contribution (EFC) value is critical. Universities use it to determine how much financial aid you qualify for, covering tuition, books, supplies, accommodation, transportation, and other educational expenses. Safdari stressed the importance of carefully completing these forms every year as they will determine the student’s financial aid for subsequent years. The calculation formula is complex, involving parents’ income and assets, students’ income and assets, family size, number of students attending college, education savings, etc.
The decision between attending a public or private university is significant as it involves not only paying tuition but also other miscellaneous expenses like room and board. Private schools have high tuition fees, but they may offer more financial aid than public schools. Safdari gave an example of a middle-income family whose child applied to the University of Southern California (USC) and received $45,000 in financial aid, making it less expensive than attending UCLA. Another student applied to Stanford University and received $48,000 in financial aid, which might influence their choice of university.
Safdari also cautioned against private loans or scholarships. He shared his experience of accumulating over $50,000 in debt over five years due to a “preferred lender list” he received, leading to monthly repayments exceeding $800, almost causing him to collapse six months after graduation. He could have applied to better private universities with cheaper tuition.
Safdari was a high school student selected for the Olympic soccer team. He aimed to excel in soccer and earn a full scholarship for college but unfortunately got injured during a match. Universities like UCLA paused the first-year scholarship they initially offered him, contingent on his recovery. Due to his family’s modest income, he eventually chose a state university. With tens of thousands of dollars in debt after graduation, he started helping people with college planning, practicing for 20 years.
Most attendees had children currently in high school who would be entering college in 2026, 2027, 2028, and 2029, while some parents had children still in primary school. Safdari stressed that planning is never too early, emphasizing the importance of how to “package” a student regardless of their academic performance. He urged parents to help their children find the right path by understanding their passions and desired careers.
Safdari underscored that the college admission process actually begins in 9th grade (freshman year). “College admissions officers look at your child’s performance from 9th grade onwards, the courses they took, difficulty levels, honors and college courses, and the skills they developed in high school,” he said. Admission officers also consider factors such as student essays, interests, special skills, recommendation letters, leadership, interviews, and consistency with the university application.
He shared an example of a student with a GPA of 4.9 and near-perfect SAT scores, but their essay merely highlighted their academic achievements. Consequently, only one out of ten universities accepted them. Safdari mentioned another student with a GPA of 3.8 and average SAT scores, but they emphasized extracurricular activities and special skills, aligning them with the requirements of the university departments. This student aspired to study engineering, so they interned at an engineering company, had speech and debate experience, and received recommendation letters from math and physics teachers, resulting in multiple acceptance letters.
“Start doing three things (activities) from 9th grade onwards to deeply showcase your special skills and passions, giving you a better chance of entering college,” Safdari advised, emphasizing the importance of “consistency” in essays during the application process. He noted that some students engage in too many extracurricular activities, which can be overwhelming.
Universities are highly lucrative businesses. Safdari stated that universities prioritize branding; institutions like Harvard, Yale, and MIT are always competing for the top spot according to the US News and World Report. One factor influencing rankings is the acceptance rate, which is the ratio of the number of acceptance letters sent by a university to the number of students who actually enroll.
If a school receives 20,000 student applications for 5,000 available spots and sends out 5,000 acceptance letters, achieving a 100% acceptance rate, but only 2,500 students respond, the acceptance rate drops to 50%. As the acceptance rate impacts funding, university admissions officers may consider increasing it.
Normally, 10th-grade students start visiting universities, demonstrating interest in a particular institution. Safdari cited an example of a student with a 4.5 GPA applying to 15 universities, highlighting that an admissions officer might select a student with a 3.7 GPA over the 4.5 GPA student if the latter isn’t keen on attending a particular school. “We recommend applying to 6-8 schools, including reach schools, target schools, and safety schools that suit the student,” Safdari concluded.