While everyone is feeling the pinch of the current economic situation, finding ways to save money in our budget is always a welcome sight. Although things like using coupons, buying store brand instead of name brand and checking out the unit price will help save extra on groceries, it won’t do much for your kids college fund. That is, unless you are buying your groceries as a Upromise member.

Upromise is a free service that saves you money on most things you purchase every day. Whether you are purchasing items online, eating at your favorite restaurant, or buying groceries, you can earn extra money that can be used for college savings. According to their website, there are more than 600 online stores, over 8,000 restaurants, and over 21,000 grocery and drug stores to choose from.

Upromise was founded upon the philosophy that everyone should be able to afford a college education. It is often through higher education that people pursue their passions and reach their dreams.

Over 10 million people are now saving money for college as members of Upromise. I have been a member for a couple of years now, and I will admit that we haven’t earned a lot toward our kids college, but then again we haven’t done anything new to earn the money. This was the first year I purchased Christmas gifts through Upromise. The items I purchased were items I had already decided to purchase, so getting them through Upromise was a no-brainier. If you would like to learn more about Upromise and how you can earn money for college, without changing one thing about your current lifestyle, you can click on the Upromise logo in the right sidebar.

Most people believe in order to attend college you must take out a student loan. Fortunately that is not true, and actually it is one of the worst things you can do for your college bound student. Either they are going to be saddled with debt as soon as they graduate, or you will be taking on the extra debt and they will have had little to no investment into what could be their greatest wealth building opportunity.

Attending a public state school will in most cases get you a very good education and will cost roughly one-third of the cost of private or out of state schools. Money Made Simple at Dolans.com, lists 6 ways to help you cover college expenses without incurring additional debt. Here is the list:

1. Start Early
2. Get a Scholarship
3. Save BIG on college textbooks
4. Get paid while you study
5. Apply for a grant
6. Start at a community college

Even if you haven’t already started saving for college, don’t fall into the trap of thinking that you have to take out a student loan. Find ways to save for college that don’t involve you or your child paying back debt year after year. Of all of the ideas mentioned, I like the one that involves your child getting a job and working. That is what I did, and it didn’t impact my grades. It did help me appreciate the degree that I earned, and it helped prepare me for the next step after college, which was getting a job.