Facing Down Form 1040

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The two most obvious ones are the Hope Credit, which is for first- or second-year college students who are enrolled at least half-time, and the Lifetime Learning Credit, which is for anyone who is taking at least one college course.

With Hope, taxpayers are eligible for a credit of $1,650 on the first $2,200 of college tuition and fees. With Lifetime, you are eligible for a credit of $2,000 on the first $10,000 of college tuition and fees.

You cannot claim both credits. Mom and Dad should also beware of the Lifetime Learning Credit. They too might be eligible for it if they have taken a college class in the last year, but they can only claim it once, which means they then wouldn't be able to claim it for a child who is a college junior or senior.

College seniors, who are preparing for life after graduation, can deduct job hunt expenses such as résumé paper, postage, or even travel to interviews (as long as the company does not reimburse you for it), says Maggie Doedtman, manager of advice delivery for H&R Block in Kansas City, Mo.

Entrepreneurial undergraduates who earn extra cash by tutoring, washing other people's clothes, dog walking, and so on, might be eligible for small-business deductions and the like, says David Robinson, senior lecturer in business at the Haas School. If you have a business—small as it might be—you'll want to find out if you qualify. Read the fine print, ask professors or parents for help, or ask an accountant if you're unsure.

Don't forget your John Hancock. Doedtman says that the biggest mistake most people make on their taxes is forgetting to sign their returns. Students, who are used to doing everything online, are most susceptible.

Blake Saunders, a junior at the Krannert School of Management at Purdue University, found out the hard way. When he filed for the first time last year, he completed his return online and never printed it out, signed it, or mailed it to the IRS. You won't be able to e-file if you don't send in a signed hard copy, warns Saunders. He says he won't be making that mistake again.

Remain calm. There's no denying that filing taxes, whether for the first time or the 20th, can be nerve racking. "I think the scariest part of filing taxes is [the possibility of] getting in trouble with the authorities, even if you make a mistake by accident," says Jorie Didier, a freshman at Syracuse.

The good news for most undergrads is that their returns tend to be straightforward, so they don't need to worry much. "I'm hoping [filing] is not difficult," says Brittany Frederickson, another Syracuse freshman. "It shouldn't be, because I don't have much income." Tax season is the one time of year that a small salary—or no salary at all—might actually be a blessing.

Di Meglio is a reporter for BusinessWeek.com in Fort Lee, N.J.