<prompt> Human: My wife and I are seriously thinking about having our first kid and the prospect of trying to pay for college is daunting! Im from Europe but we live in the US my wife is American, and if possible we would like for our children to not be burdened with hundreds of thousands of dollars of student loans, but equally want to provide a path for our kids to reach their full potential. If that means Ivy League, we want to be prepared.Trying to plan ahead - what are the most cost effective paths to a degree from a top tier college?Some of my thoughts would be: Academic Scholarship Music Scholarship Athletic Scholarship Military Scholarship Progressing from 2 year college 4 year college top tier for MastersProfessionalWhat other routes are there to a top tier degree in the US whilst trying to remain sensible financially?  <response>: Most top-tier universities dont even offer academic scholarships, so thats out right off the bat. And at least Harvard doesnt offer athletic scholarships either. 