But where do you even begin?

That’s a great question and one we hear all the time.

Parents and grandparents only want what’s best for their children and grandchildren. And with the world rapidly changing before our eyes, as well as the cost of education escalating year after year, you’re not alone if you worry about their future.

Nevertheless with some sound financial advice, careful planning and an eye on the future, it’s never too early to start planning (and saving) for your child’s education.

In this article we explore why planning is important in education and why a baby education plan is becoming more commonplace.

Why planning your child’s education is an important gift they will carry with them always

There’s no denying that in our modern world a good education is one of the most important gifts you can give your child. But a good education doesn’t just happen. It starts when you read to your child, when you teach them social skills and send them to a good preschool.

It’s even spending half an hour peering at the wriggly things in a puddle of water in the garden, then jumping online and researching tadpoles, water and wriggly things in puddles. Education isn’t just about books. It’s about interacting with and learning about the world around them.

We’re lucky in Australia because we have a sound public education system. While public (or government) schools are free to attend for every child, there’s still considerable costs involved. With estimates showing that over a child’s 13 years of public schooling you can outlay around $70,000. With the costs considerably more if you make the decision as a parent to educate your child privately. You can try our cost of education calculator to work out the potential costs you might face.

However you choose to educate your school aged child, if they want to pursue a higher education, they and you will need to pay. This is why planning is important when it comes to education.

Rising educations costs mean a baby education plan makes perfect sense

 

The days of a free education are long gone so planning your child’s education from when they’re a baby makes perfect sense.

Even the so-called free education offered in our public schools comes with associated costs and most public schools rely on the ‘voluntary contributions’ of parents to successfully run the school. As the writer of a recent ABC news article noted:

‘We felt like we were contributing enough without having to also pay thousands of dollars just to send our kids to school when public education in Australia is meant to be free’.

The article goes on to discuss how public schools are relying more on the financial contributions of parents to help in the day to day running of schools. An unexpected financial burden for parents, especially first time parents, who assume a free public education, possibly like the one they enjoyed as children, is still just that. Free.

It’s no wonder parents are looking at saving for their child’s future almost from the day they’re born. Not to mention, these expenses only increase if you and your children look towards university to build on their education.

The real cost of educating your child might surprise you. To give you a better idea of the dollars involved, fill in your child or children’s details in our online calculator and in just a few minutes, you’ll have some numbers in front of you.

If these numbers shocked you, it’s never too early to start planning for your child’s future.

Reducing the pressure on your children

Imagine if your child wants to go to university, or take up some other type of advanced education, but they know there’s no money set aside or invested allowing them to do this.

Yes there’s limited government support such as Austudy, ABSTUDY and the Youth Allowance. And sure, they can always take a part time job to help support themselves as they study. But that’s just the day to day living expenses.

What about the costs of the diplomas or degrees they’re studying to obtain?

What parent wouldn’t want to avoid having their 18 year old go into many thousands of dollars’ worth of debt? Saving over the long term and planning ahead with an Education Bond will change things.

And with COVID-19 keeping international students away, who knows what impact this will have on the future costs of a tertiary education for Aussie kids.

Now imagine if your child knows there’s money invested on their behalf for their education. It may cover their entire tuition or it may just cover part, but it may just help your child decide to continue their education and give themselves a better chance at a better life.

What a difference that would make to their confidence in planning their own future.

Planning your child’s education leads to a greater range of career options on offer

It’s no secret that some of the jobs we once viewed as secure are teetering on the edge of extinction. With technology moving ahead at a breathtaking pace, the range of job options and opportunities is expanding. In spite of this, many of these jobs require either a better education or further education after high school to secure even entry level positions.

Kids these days are born with all the information of the world in the palm of their hands. They no longer follow in the footsteps of their parents or take any old job just to pay the bills. The world is their oyster and having a good education can give your child the life they dream of.

Deciding to invest in your child’s education is a decision to invest in your child.

And if there’s a greater gift a parent or grandparent can give to their child we can’t think of it. So start planning for your child’s education future today.

One day, they might just say thank you.