Save on College by Picking the Right School

Be aware of gender statistics, because a school weighted against your sex might offer financial incentives to lift its "boy count" or "girl count."

3. Venture outside state lines.

Colleges love diversity -- not just in heritage, but in home address as well.

Public schools have an especially large portion of students coming from within the state border, with Texas at 87%, California at 84% and Virginia at 80%, according to O'Shaughnessy.

The further away the school, the better the package is likely to be, she says. Her daughter ventured from their home in San Francisco all the way to Pennsylvania to get a better deal.

4. Don't discount the endowment.

While many assume their higher price tags are set in stone, private schools -- unlike public universities -- have endowments to tap into when drafting aid packages.

If a student has certain qualities the private school is seeking, its $40,000 tuition can fall far below that of the $20,000 state school, O'Shaughnessy says. This is especially useful for families in higher income brackets who would not qualify for aid offered by the government, other than loans.

Make sure to highlight qualities the school is looking for when negotiating with financial aid officers.

"Do you have something a school wants?" says O'Shaughnessy. "They're going to be more willing to throw you money to get you to come."

Don't let outside scholarships detract from other awards.

While every little bit counts, the average private scholarship is just $2,000 and may not last all four years.