Disentangling your life from your former spouse’s takes time and effort, and if the two of you share a child together, you need to give additional thought to your child’s future. While you and your ex work through custody and child support arrangements, you can also use this time to hash out a plan to finance your child’s higher education.
While Georgia does not legally require you or your ex to determine how to pay for your son or daughter’s college after you formally part ways, it can still benefit your entire family to do so. By setting a clear plan in place now, you may avoid potential conflicts down the line. Also, a divorce may impact your child’s ability to obtain financial aid, so the more you know about what to expect, the better your chances of being financially prepared for what lies ahead.
Creating a plan
Your child’s age should factor in when creating a plan for college education. If your child is very young when you and your ex part ways, you may simply agree to revisit the subject in a few years. However, if college is not too far away, it can serve you well to hash out the details now.
Do you both plan to finance higher education equally? Does one of you plan to pay for classes, and the other cover books and lodging? These are the matters to work through while you have the time to do it.
Considering future variables
It can also serve you to figure out what to do in the event that your child decides not to attend higher education or wishes to go to a trade school rather than a four-year college. What if your child decides to take a gap year before starting school? What if your or your ex remarries before your child’s college years? These are matters to address in your initial college planning process.
Regardless of your feelings for your former partner, make sure to keep your focus on your child when planning for college.
