Education

Yes. As a doctor or nurse you may deduct the cost of refresher courses. The IRS feels these courses are required to maintain or improve your job skills.

An Educational IRA is a custodial account or a trust set up for the purpose of paying the qualified higher educational expenses of the designated beneficiary of the account.
The designated beneficiary must be a child under age 18. In general higher educational expenses include tuition, fees, books, supplies and room and board for at least half-time attendance.
You may contribute up to $2,000 each year.
The contributions are not tax deductible.
For the current year, an individual may contribute to a child’s educational IRA if those individuals Modified Adjusted Gross Income is not more than $ 110,000 ($220,000 for a married filing joint return).
There is a phase out if the MAGI is between $95,000 and $110,000 for non-joint filers and between $190,000 and $220,000 for joint filers. Amounts in the account accumulate tax-free until distribution.
Distribution of the contribution is always tax-free and the earnings on the contribution are tax free if less than or equal to the years educational expenses.
If more than the educational expense then a pro rata calculation is required. The assets in the account must be withdrawn by the age of 30. No contribution amount may be made in any year who also contributes to a qualified state tuition program on behalf of the same beneficiary.

Withdrawals from a regular IRA that are used for higher educational expenses at a post secondary school are not subject to the 10% penalty on early withdrawals that is reported on IRS Form 5329. Qualified expenses include tuition, books, fees, supplies and room and board if student is at least a half-time student.

Taxpayers who have student loans are allowed to deduct up to $2,500 in annual interest payments on the loan directly from their gross income, subject to phase-out rules.
In the current year the phase-out amount was if the Modified Adjusted Gross Income was more than $75,000 if single, head of household or qualifying widower and $150,000 if married filing jointly.
Qualifying loans include any debt incurred to pay for higher education expenses for you, spouse or a dependent at the time the debt was incurred.
The student must have been enrolled on at least a half-time basis when the loan was made in order for the interest to be deductible. The student will receive a form verifying his or her half-time basis eligibility.

(US News = ww.usnews.com/usnews/edu) (Princeton Reviews list = www.review.com/college) (Rankings Issues = www.library.uiuc.edu/edx/rankings.htm)

www.collegeboard.org/sat/html/satform.html is SAT on line forms access) (www.act.org/aap/regist/index.html is ACT on line forms access) (www.collegeboard.com is the College Boards site with advice and explanations and SAT review questions.) (www.college.com includes free SAT and ACT practice tests) (www.number2.com includes free SAT practice tests)

The money you earn from Federal Work Study is generally subject to Federal and State income tax but exempt from Social Security taxes. This is provided you are enrolled full time, and work less than half-time.

Yes. Most Financial Aid offices require that you apply for financial aid every year. If your financial circumstances change, Your financial aid may change and you may get more or less aid. After your first year you will receive a FAFSA Renewal Application which contains preprinted information from the previous year's FAFSA form. Your eligibility for financial aid may change significantly, especially if your parents work situation has changed or you have a different number of family members in college. Renewal of your financial aid package also depends on your continued satisfactory academic progress toward a degree, such as earning a minimum number of credits or achieving a minimum grade point average.

No. Parents will only be responsible for your educational loans if you are under 18 and they cosign your loan. In general you and you alone are responsible for repaying your educational loans. Parents are responsible for the Federal PLUS loans only. If your parents want to help pay off your education loans, you can have your billing statements sent to their address. Also, if your lender provides an electronic payment service where the monthly payments are automatically deducted from a bank account, your parents can agree to have the payments deducted from their account. Your parents are under no legal obligation to repay your loans. If they forget to pay the bill on time or decide to cancel the electronic payment agreement, you will be held responsible for the payments, not them.