My parents seemed surprised that in September 1986, my first day of New York University had arrived; nobody had saved even a token amount for college. There was some scrapping and scraping; what wasn't covered by grants and scholarships I got in loans at reasonable interest rates, and I even looked forward to the monthly ritual of carefully tearing out a paper coupon from a book, writing a check and counting how many more pages until I was debt-free in my mid-20s.

Today, the college finance landscape is like one of those video games where there is peril at every turn in the form of murderous interest rates and a precipitous middle area where folks are too poor to pay full price but too rich for aid. Tuition prices seem like they added on extra zeroes just for fun. Everybody needs some cheat codes to optimize their education dollars — especially if cost is the make-or-break factor in going to school.

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College is one of the biggest investments we can make in time, energy and money — and saving for it can help soften the blow. The most common mistake people make, including my family, is waiting too long. "Starting early, even with small contributions, can make a big difference in the amount........

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