While negotiating a divorce, Texas parents often take great care in making sure that they do what is best for their children. They look at where the child should live and provide opportunities for the child to stay connected to the other parent. Yet, one area that can easily be overlooked is how the divorce will affect the child’s future education. The divorce agreement and child custody can play a role in the financial aspects related to the child and college.
The divorce agreement is often the starting point. As the couple is negotiating the other aspects of raising their children post divorce, it is important to consider how college will be funded. The contribution that each parent is responsible for should be included in the agreement. Additionally, how to address the various “what ifs” that may come up should be addressed. These often include what if the child does not want to attend college or does not graduate from college until after the age at which child support is required.
Another aspect to consider is child custody. Federal financial aid required income information from the custodial parent. This is the parent with whom the child lived the majority of the time; in some cases this may not be the parent who has legal custody. This can have an impact upon the amount of aid that the child qualifies for.
Divorce is a time of change for the family. As a part of this change, parents want what is best for their children. One part of this process is to look forward and recognize that college is in the not too distant future. The Texas couple will want to address this as a part of their divorce and child custody agreement.