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Hi, I'm Nancy Goodman, founder of College Money Matters.

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In the last six years, we've learned a lot about paying for college from the families and students we've interviewed.

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In this segment, I thought I'd share three things I wish every family knew before applying to college.

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First, have a family conversation about money and have it early in the process.

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Yeah, I get it. Nobody likes to talk about money, and everyone has different views on how to spend it or save it.

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Furthermore, parents aren't probably very open with their children on what they make.

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I know we weren't with our son -- but this is a big expense.

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And before you start on the process of college applications, doesn't it make sense to come to some family understanding of what the budget is?

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Both the student and parent may need to borrow, and you should set sensible limits.

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And you could find some guidelines on the College Money Matters website about how to do this.

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You may think your child has no interest in money, but some recent research shows that that isn't true.

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And if you don't talk now, there's likely to be disappointment or even conflict in the Spring when you disagree on which schools cost too much.

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And by the way, sometimes you parents will have to take flack from your student who has fallen in love with a particular college, when a good education could be had at a State University at a third of the cost.

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I have a New Jersey friend with five children.

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He told them at the very beginning you can go to any college you want, as long as it's Rutgers.

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Second, please apply for scholarships right away in the fall of your senior year.

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I know it's completely counterintuitive.

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Why would you be applying for scholarships before you even apply to colleges?

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Well, it's because some of the scholarship deadlines are as early as October, and almost all are done by March 31st.

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I can tell from the College Money Matters website analytics that hits on the scholarship section start in March.

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This is too late, so please take a look at our scholarship section and start looking and applying right away.

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And if you get more scholarships than you need… great, wonderful, you'll use them next year.

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Third, try your best to graduate in four years.

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When we talked to high school students about this, they said “why does it matter?”

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And you can see from the statistics, 60% of students take six years to graduate.

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But here's why it matters.

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One, graduating in four years means you can get into the workforce sooner and you start earning, rather than paying for housing for another semester or two.

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Two, federal government loans cover four years only.

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If you stay longer, you'll have to borrow from more expensive lenders and borrow more money.

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But why do people take longer than four years?

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Well, here's what happens.

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They drop classes they're not doing well in. They don't sign up for a full load of classes in the first place. In their senior year, they can't get the one particular course they need to graduate. Or they change majors and have to take extra courses for the new major.

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Does it matter whether you major in history or political science? If it doesn't, stay in the major you started with.

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Work with your counselor at the college and make sure you stay on track for a four year graduation, even if it means taking summer or online courses or even extra courses for a semester or two.

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And if you really want to be smart, graduate a semester early.

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And save $6000 on housing.

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If you found this segment helpful, you'll find more valuable tips elsewhere on the College Money Matters website.

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And if you have more questions, drop us a line.