One idea for college that I read on another blog was that the parents paid for housing during college but the kid covered everything else. This seemed to push the kid who was writing the post to apply for tons of scholarships and work internships during the summers. She felt she earned her degree and pushed herself harder than the kids who were partying on their parents’ money.

My parents paid for my first year completely and gave me $8000 in loans at 5% interest during the last 3 years. I worked part-time on campus jobs 30-39 hours a week to cover what my scholarships didn’t. When I graduated and was going to start paying back the loans, my parents forgave them as a graduation gift. It worked, I definitely felt like I earned my degree, but it was too emotional. I’d suggest something more straight-forward.