How can I save money for my son's education?

I am a nurse, so I make decent money. But I am a single mom and it is still so difficult to save. How can I invest money either in the stock market or in some kind of plan? My son is only 6 months old, so I have 17 years to save, but by then college could cost $200,000 (or more!). I really want to be in a position to send him to a good school if he wants to go. It will be horrible if he does really well in school and then I cannot afford to help him with college. I want him to have every chance to make it!

First of all, it's great that you are planning this far in advance. I would begin by making sure that my "financial house" is in order before starting the college savings. Do you have any debt problems, are you saving for your retirement ..., Once you have everything else in order you should start investing in a 529 plan or Coverdale IRA systematically each month.

Your savings and spending habits are the most important factors in saving for retirement your son's education.

you don't save a penny for college unless you are already saving the maximum you can for your own retirement. College can be paid for with grants, loans, scholarships and work. Retirement happens only if you have saved the dough.
do a 529 plan. do research on it.

1. estimate how much tutition will be when your son starts college.
2. then divide that amount by 17 (years before he go to college). this is the annual amount you'll need to save.
3. divide that number (from item 2) by the number of times you get paid per year. this is the amount you'll need to save per check.
4. invest this amount in a savings vehicle such as a the vanguard fund, stock/bond market (beware of fees), real estate, etc.
good luck

Check out 529 savings plans for his higher education. They have federal and state tax incentives. Check with your state treasurers office about your state;s plan. You also might consider savings bonds. The interest may be exempt from taxes if you use them for his education

Open a brokerage account at Zecco and I will send him to Harvard for FREE. (I mean I will help you to pick the right stocks at the right time for the next 18 years for FREE)

I am a Portfolio Manager.

If you started doing survey and offer sites, you would have double what you need for your son in seventeen years..which means you would have alot of extra spending money for yourself. I make 600 a week doing surveys and offers, so this is how I calculated it.

600*4=2,400

2,400*12=28,000

28,000*17=476,000

If you're interested, I have a link to the sites that I use on my profile. Good luck to you! :DD