[单项选择]As long as her parents can remember, 13-year-old Katie Hart has been talking about going to college. Her mother, Tally, a financial-aid officer at an Ohio university, knows all too well the daunting calculus of paying for a college education. Last year the average yearly tuition at a private, four-year school climbed 5.5 percent to more than $17,000. The Harts have started saving, and figure they can afford a public university without a problem. But what if Katie applies to Princeton (she’s threatening), where one year’s tuition, room and board — almost $34,000 in 2002 — will cost more than some luxury cars Even a number cruncher like Tally admits it’s a little scary, especially since she’ll retire and Katie will go to college at around the same time.
Paying for college has always been a humbling endeavor. The good news: last year students collected $74 billion in financial aid, the most ever. Most families pay less than full freight. Sixty percent of public-university students an