Investment Options

The right college financing strategy may be one of the most important investment decisions you will make. What if you're not an investment professional? We know most people aren't, so we've set up a choice of six investment options.

You can invest new contributions in any one or combination of these six investment options: the Managed Allocation Option, Diversified Equity Option, 100% Equity Option, Balanced Option, Fixed Income Option, and Guaranteed Option. These investment options vary in their investment strategy and degree of risk, allowing you to select an option or combination of options that may fit your needs.

• Review Investment Performance
• Fees and Expenses
• Underlying TIAA-CREF Institutional Mutual Funds
• Read the OCSP Disclosure Booklet and Participation Agreements (PDF, 961KB)

Changing Your Investments
Once you invest in a particular investment option, you can transfer contributions and any earnings to another investment option once per calendar year or upon a transfer of funds to a OCSP account for a different beneficiary. (See the OCSP Disclosure Booklet and Participation Agreements (PDF, 961KB) for more information.)

Periodically Review Your Investments
It's a good idea to periodically re-evaluate your investment strategy as your goals, investment horizon, and personal situation change - for example, annually at tax time, on a yearly basis if your income changes, or upon the birth of another child.

 
Managed Allocation Option
Investing in the Managed Allocation Option follows the method of using the number of years an investor has for saving to determine the appropriate investment allocation. The Managed Allocation Option is the core investment for the Oklahoma College Savings Plan. Although there is no guarantee that the investment objectives will be met, this option offers the opportunity to invest aggressively when the beneficiary is young, and over time, more conservatively, thus  creating a balanced approach. Aged-based investment portfolios combine equity, real estate, fixed income, and money market mutual funds offered by the TIAA-CREF Institutional Mutual Funds. Younger beneficiaries will have a higher exposure to equities and real estate investments which will decrease significantly as they approach college age, as the following charts illustrate:

Allocations for all investments are as of September 2007. Allocations are reviewed and adjusted periodically.

 
100% Equity Option
The Equity Option provides a blend of domestic and international securities mutual funds which, may provide greater investment return opportunities over the long-term. Given the higher volatility of this option, the risk of loss can be greater over a shorter investment horizon.

Balanced Option
The Balanced Option is designed to appeal to moderately conservative and moderately aggressive Account Owners who are willing to accept and can tolerate a degree of volatility in exchange for potentially higher returns over time. This option may be appropriate for use as a single Investment Option, or for use in conjunction with other investment options offered by the program.

 
Fixed-Income Option
The Fixed Income Option is designed for Account Owners who are willing and able to accept some volatility in returns in order to attempt to achieve a long-term rate of return potentially higher than that offered through less volatile investments such as the Guaranteed Option. It may not be appropriate as a single investment option, but may provide a useful means by which to obtain incremental exposure to fixed-income markets as part of an overall college savings strategy.

Guaranteed Option
Contributions under this Investment Option are allocated to the Funding Agreement issued by TIAA-CREF Life to OCSP. The current Funding Agreement is an insurance contract which provides OCSP with a guaranteed return of principal and an annual minimum rate of return, with the opportunity for additional returns. The guarantee is to OCSP, not directly to account owners. The rate of any additional returns is declared in advance by TIAA-CREF Life for a period of up to 12 months and is not guaranteed for future periods. However, OCSP cannot predict the amount of any such additional returns under the Funding Agreement beyond such 12-month period. The minimum rate over the term of the Funding Agreement will not be less than 1% nor greater than 3% and will be reset each year beginning on April 1, 2007. Please refer to the disclosure booklet for more detailed information regarding the calculation of the minimum rate.

Effective April 1, 2008, accumulations under the Funding Agreement for the Guaranteed Option as of March 31, 2008, are credited to the Oklahoma College Savings Plan with an effective annual interest rate of 3.15%, and are guaranteed to earn this rate through March 31, 2009, subject to the claims-paying ability of TIAA-CREF Life Insurance Company. The Oklahoma College Savings Plan will be credited with an effective annual interest rate of 3.15% on contributions received and earnings on such contributions under the Funding Agreement for the Guaranteed Option from April 1, 2008, until further notice, and is guaranteed to earn this rate through March 31, 2009, subject to the claims-paying ability of TIAA-CREF Life Insurance Company.

Underlying TIAA-CREF Institutional Mutual Funds
Following is the list of underlying TIAA-CREF Institutional Mutual Funds.

Please read the prospectus for the TIAA-CREF Institutional Mutual Funds before investing. However, keep in mind that an investment in the Oklahoma College Savings Plan is not the same as a direct investment in the underlying mutual funds.

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