<prompt> Human: Ive been lurking on rpersonalfinance for some time now and I think we have a good plan. We have no debt, a small mortgage, max out our 401k and generally live within our means. Im lucky enough to make a good salary with a tech company that provides yearly stock options that have been vesting yearly.Out of state tuition would be about 10k-15k per semester above the in-state pre-paid we currently have. Without getting into the craziness of the cost of education these days, we could absorb most if not all of the added expense simply by diverting my yearly vested options to cover the education costs.However, is this the best option?Id like my kid to have a vested financial interest in his education, of course. But how much is too much? Or too little? Shall we take advantage and max out student loans early and then pay them down after graduation with a lump payment as a gift from the accrued options? Sell along the way to keep the loans more manageable? What is a recommended manageable student loan debt anyway? Given his expected income on graduation could be part of the equation his intended degree would be in aerospace engineering.  <response>: If your son is choosing to go out of state and its going to put a bit of pressure on your familys finances, I dont think its a terrible idea to have him responsible for the delta between in and out of state tuition. He could cover it through working through school or through a loan from you that he pays off post-graduation if you dont want to go the student loan route. 