Research the costs of attending college. Go to CollegeBoard.com and read and take notes on the figures.
Organize the financial facts you've read into a written outline that will guide you through the conversation with your teenager. Include in your report not only the costs of tuition and fees, which, according to CollegeBoard.com's 2010-11 statistics, may run from $9,000 to $35,000 per year, depending on whether your child attends a public or private college.
Write in your outline the figures for books and supplies. CollegeBoard.com cites that as of 2010-11, those expenses may run your child $1,137. Encourage him to also include rate increases that often occur with the passage of time.
Rehearse your speech with your child with the outline you have prepared.
Have the conversation with your child. Choose a time when you are likely to have his attention, such as at the dinner table. Refrain from being confrontational in tone. Calmly highlight the importance of a good college education. Present the facts to him that you have in your prepared outline concerning expenses.
Share with him your financial situation. Talk to him about your debts, the rent or mortgage, and the cost of sending his siblings to college.
Offer him an incentive to graduate with a scholarship. The Scholarship Workshop website offers the example of a new car. If you can't promise him the automobile due to your finances, offer him a less expensive item that you know he would value. Attach conditions to the promise, such as that it must be a full-ride scholarship.
Walk your child through the scholarship process. Help him fill out his FAFSA, or Free Application for Student Financial Aid. Then help him navigate a scholarship site, such as FastWeb. Encourage him to seek one in an area in which he excels -- whether it's sports, music or science.