FLORIDA, USA — The deadline for this year’s Florida Prepaid pricing is Friday, April 30. The college payment plan allows parents to lock in the price of college at today’s rate, so their children's tuition is paid for by the time they graduate from high school.
“It made financial sense," St. Johns County mother Heather Wade said. "And just having that security, knowing that it would be taken care of.”
Wade’s two daughters have been enrolled with Florida Prepaid since they were very young. And her oldest, 13-year-old Catherine, already has her four-year tuition taken care of.
“And we actually got a refund. So, that was nice," she explained. "And then my younger daughter, we started when she was probably two or three. And so we pay monthly on hers.”
The program has also brought some relief to the graduating students themselves.
“When I went to grad school, a lot of people talked about how they still had undergrad debt that they were dealing with," Michaele Bradford, went to the University of Florida using Florida Prepaid said. "And I was like, 'wow, I didn't have to do that.'“
Since she also received a Bright Futures scholarship, Bradford added, the only costs her parents had to worry about when she went off to UF was her meal plan.
University of North Florida Associate Director of Financial Aid Marla Lewis said there are many different plans and payment schedules parents can choose from.
“There are a ton of options now. You can do a university level, you can do a state college level, you can add the dorm room," Lewis gave some examples.
She said the program is also flexible depending on where students want to go to school – it can be used in state or out of state, at public or private colleges and universities nationwide.
If you’re interested in enrolling your children, you can find more information about the different plans and payment schedules on the Florida Prepaid website.