Visiting a campus is exciting, but also challenging. Think of it as a mission. Your first step is to contact the college's Office of Admissions. Admissions representatives, such as those at Eastern Michigan University, can schedule a guided tour.

If your child is entering high school, now is a good time to set up a system to keep track of important documents and information to prepare for the college application process.

Of all the web sites you need to visit to help your child finance college, the most important one is from the federal government. The FAFSA, or Free Application for Federal Student Aid, is a requirement for colleges to process your requests for grants, scholarships and loans.

It's never too late to start thinking about applying for college scholarships. You'd be surprised at how many are available and what they cover.