How to manage the unpredictable costs of your child's education?

The days of parents deciding their child's profession on the very day they are born are more or less in the past. These days, children are increasingly deciding what they want to study based on their aptitude and interest. That's more power to children, but less certainty for a parent. Will their child pursue medicine, a creative field or even want to study abroad? Each path has unique financial demands, and even slight changes can dramatically alter the child's higher education cost. The below table illustrates why: