High School Students Get Down To Business In Planning And Paying For College, College Savings Foundation Survey Finds

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May 06, 2015, 09:00 ET

WASHINGTON, May 6, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- High school students from across the country are taking a pro-active approach to planning and paying for their higher education – with a bolder emphasis on working, saving, and managing costs. The College Savings Foundation's sixth annual How Youth Plan to Pay for College survey of high school seniors, juniors and sophomores across the country found they showed both the will and the way to fund higher education, including greater use of 529 college savings plans.

This year as in previous years, the vast majority – 82% – believe it is their responsibility to pay for at least part of their higher education; and three quarters of students plan on paying for at least part of it. The difference this year, is those students will pay for more: 71% plan to pay for over 25% of college costs, compared to 53% last year.

"We are very encouraged to see that high school students are taking financing of higher education seriously and have already shown themselves to be active planners and savers," said Mary Morris, Chair of CSF, a leading nonprofit helping American families save for their children's college education.

More in-depth information is found at www.collegesavingsfoundation.org

More students are saving and they are saving more:

51% are already saving for higher education, up from 44% last year.
83% of savers have already put aside at least $1,000 this year, compared to 67% last year.

Both students and their parents are utilizing 529 plans:

33% of all students say that either they or their parents are using a 529, up from 24% last year.
Of those saving 24% say that 529 college savings plans are their primary way of saving for higher education costs – up from 10% last year.

Students are also taking practical approaches to saving:

40% are willing to forgo material things for college savings, versus 28% last year.
49% have jobs to help pay for college – up from 41% last year.

Once they get to college, many plan to work full or part time, even though it may cause some of them to lose their full-time student status:

59% are planning to work – compared to 51% last year.
23% of students expecting to work say that this will force them to become a part-time student, compared to 15% last year.

Their higher education choices are shifting:

50% expect to attend public college, 19% community college, 16% private college and 5% vocational or career programs.
17% of all respondents expect to take a gap year.
23% of all students said that they have had to limit their higher education choices because of costs, with 61% of those changing to community college.

The number of students who think of vocation schools as private and public colleges doubled, to 42% from 21% last year.

Expected use of student loans are down:

55% intend on borrowing, down from 72% last year.
However, 65% percent of borrowers will need to borrow more than a quarter of their total education costs, compared to 47% last year.

On special occasions, students would rather receive money for education than tangible gifts (71% versus 66% last year). More expect help from relatives: 53% versus 41% last year.

The survey was conducted by CSF using an online survey of over 500 high school seniors, juniors and sophomores across the country, using Survey Monkey with parental permission.

SOURCE College Savings Foundation