From tuition and books to room and board, the cost of college is staggering - and it isn't getting any cheaper. What you're saving today may not be enough to cover the cost of your child's college education tomorrow. This text provides straightforward, tax-efficient strategies to save for your children's college education - whether they're eight months old or eighteen years old. Even if you've worked out how much money you need to save, you still need to make many other important decisions, such as how that money will be invested, the tax consequences of those investments, and how that investment portfolio should change over time. Key coverage helps you to: choose the investments that fit into your college savings plan-stocks, bonds, mutual funds, CollegeSure CDs, and US treasury bills; use educational savings provisions in the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 to speed up the growth of your college savings; understand how 529 savings plans stack up to prepaid plans, education IRAs, UGMAs, and UTMAs; select a financial planner who will help you plot a strategy for college savings; and apply for financial aid such as grants, loans, work-study jobs, and scholarships.