5 easy steps every parent should take if they want to be able to pay for their kid to go to college

Parents are saving for college at record levels - but they're still coming up short.

According to Fidelity's recently released 10-Year College Progress Report, 72% of parents reported saving for college this year - a record high - compared to 58% in 2007.

But despite this increase, the study found that just 29% of parents are on track to reach their savings goals by the time their kid packs up for freshman year, making it more important than ever for parents to start saving early.

Fidelity asked parents with children in 10th grade or older what they wished they had done 10 years earlier to boost their college savings efforts, and they shared several strategies they wished they'd started from day one.

Here are five easy ways every new (or not so new) parent can start saving right away: