4. Borrow student loans

Money you don’t repay — like donations, wages and emergency grants — is the best way to address unexpected college costs.

But student loans may be a necessity for some: Among the 61% of students surprised by the cost of college, 30% underestimated what they needed by $10,000 or more.

“If you’re short by enough that there’s a comma in the number, you might need to borrow,” says Joe DePaulo, CEO and co-founder of College Ave Student Loans.

That assumes you haven’t already reached your borrowing maximum.

The government limits the amount of federal loans you can receive. Most first-year students can take out up to $5,500 in their name, and no one can borrow more than their school’s cost of attendance, the total needed for tuition, fees, room and board and other expenses.

Visit your school’s financial aid office to discuss your options — especially if your financial situation has changed since you started school.

“It’s important to work through why the student is experiencing a shortfall in order to determine the best course of action,” Lindberg says.

That action may be borrowing, or it could be something else like starting a tuition payment plan or earning an outside scholarship. Ultimately, the financial aid office should be your first stop if you run into trouble. This article was provided to The Associated Press by the personal finance website NerdWallet. Ryan Lane is a writer at NerdWallet. Email: rlane@nerdwallet.com. Twitter: @ryanhlane.