Funding a college education is something many American parents worry about even before their children are born.

The Wall Street Journal gathered a group of industry, academic and  business leaders to discuss this question, which  relates to a recent article that discussed alternatives to 529 plans for college savings.

Rick Ferri: It All Comes Down to Saving – Parents either don’t save, don’t save enough or start saving too late…..

Michelle Perry Higgins: Don’t Deplete Your Retirement Account – Besides the big “no-no” which is not saving at all, I would say the biggest mistake is depleting a retirement account to fund a child’s college education. ….

Manisha Thakor: Consider ‘Education’—Not Necessarily ‘College’ – The traditional answer is, “sacrificing your retirement to do so.” This is true. But I’m not sure it’s the biggest mistake. Increasingly I’ve come to believe the biggest mistake goes one step deeper to our root beliefs about education. In the industrial world a college education opened doors to a prescribed path by telling the world we had met certain hurdles. In the information age, this may not matter as much. What matters in today’s world is output, not merely input. In this new world there is a different cost-benefit analysis to education. While “education” is still clearly essential to human growth and economic development, “college” may no longer be the only—or the preferred—way for everyone to achieve that…

Eleanor Blayney: First, Do a Cost-Benefit Calculation – As I learned in graduate school, keep the investment decision separate from the financing decision. In the case of a college education for a child, it’s important for parents to first evaluate the benefits and costs of a particular college program for their child. What kind of career and future earnings can be expected with the degree? ….

Tom Brakke: Don’t Rely on Rosy Predictions — A common mistake is expecting investment returns to do the heavy lifting—and relying on historical returns as indicators of future returns in doing your planning. Instead, focus on the savings component of your plan and don’t rely on rosy projections of returns. Then you are more likely to be pleasantly surprised rather than shocked at your shortfall…

George Papadopoulos: The Biggest Mistake Is Waiting Too Long — The biggest mistake must be waiting too long to actually start saving toward this goal. The same is true for saving for retirement…..

Sheryl Garrett: There Is No Retirement Financial Aid — One common mistake is that many of us focus on college expenses at the detriment of our retirement savings. Remember the phrase “there is no financial aid for retirement.” There are several options if a student really wants to get a college degree, but parents may not have very many options when it comes to your retirement…other than moving in with your well-educated children….