Did you know that student loan debt is perhaps one of the biggest financial woes that most young Americans face? While you may assume that the average loan that they rack up lies between 5,000 to 10,000 US dollars; however, a report in Wall Street Journal says otherwise. The average student loan debt for most students is more than USD 37,000. That can weight so heavy on families with a lower income.

The only way to work around this is to start saving up for college for students well in advance. There are ways to consider saving for college for students. With the following guide, you can start keeping some funds aside and contribute to your child’s education.

Steps you should take before you start saving up:
While most experts would say that saving for college for students should be your priority, the truth is that you should not prioritize it over your retirement plans. There are other ways to fund a child’s education, but your retirement is going to work only with the help of savings.

Before you consider a full-fledged savings plan, here are a few specific priorities that must be checked off your list:

• Ensure that about ten percent of your savings are being put towards a proper retirement plan.
• Pay off loans that come with high interest. These can include your mortgage or your credit card bills.
• If you have your student loan debt, then clear that off before you start saving up for your kid’s college.
• Always have a fund that keeps savings to last you for three to six months, in case of an unfortunate eventuality.
• You should also have an accident fund in place to deal with simple expenses like medical bills and car expenses.

Once, all these things are taken care of, you can start focusing on saving for college for students.

How soon can you start saving up?
As per the College Board, the tuition expenses at any four-year public institute have gone up by 51% just in the last decade. For example, in the year 2009-10, the average fees for a four-year course were over USD 15,000 in public institutes and about USD 35,000 in private institutes.

The point is that there is no certain age or mark at which you can start saving up for college. Plans like 529 allow you to start saving up even before a child is born. Remember that no amount is too small. Even saving up USD 40 or USD 50 every month can lead to huge savings 18 years down the line. Your child will truly thank you for this.

Choose the right plan
The most important step is to ensure that you pick the right option for savings. Much like retirement plans, it is very easy to be stuck with the wrong option for college savings too.

The top three ways through which you can save up for college include:

• Education Savings Account
• 529 Plan
• Uniform Transfer to Minors Act (UTMA)