Survey from Discover Student Loans Reveals a
Third of Parents Are Very Worried Their Child’s Debt Will Impact
Their Retirement Plan
The sixth annual Discover Student Loans survey reveals half of
parents consider a school’s academic program the most important
factor when determining which college or university their child
might attend, while just 31 percent said cost was the determining
factor. Although cost is not the top factor when it comes to
selecting a school, 74 percent of parents said they are very or
somewhat worried about having enough money to help pay for their
child’s college education.
Parents Are Worried about Taking on Their Child’s
Debt
To help pay for their child’s college education, 29 percent of
parents said most of the money will come from student loans,
followed by 27 percent using family savings and 13 percent planning
to use 529 savings plan.
While 55 percent of parents reported are very or somewhat likely
to help their child pay student loans, a number that has stayed
consistent in the past three years, 59 percent of parents are very
or somewhat worried that taking on their child’s debt will impact
their retirement plan.
“We would like to see more families take advantage of the Free
Application for Federal Student Aid [FAFSA], which determines
eligibility for financial aid,” said Mike Boush, senior vice
president of Discover Student Loans. “Our survey showed that only
45 percent of parents filled out the FAFSA, which means families
could be missing out on grants and scholarships that do not need to
be paid back. We encourage all families to complete the FAFSA
regardless if they think they’ll qualify.”
Parents Are Talking With Their Child about the Cost of
College
Despite feeling concerned about having enough money for college,
nearly three-quarters of parents, 74 percent, said they plan to
help their child pay for their college education. However, most
aren’t planning to cover the entire cost themselves. Eighty-six
percent of parents said their child should share in the
responsibility of paying for at least some of their college
education, a number that has remained consistent for the past three
years.
“It’s important for children to learn strong financial habits
especially if they’re going to share in the responsibility of
paying for college,” said Boush. “Our survey showed that nearly a
third of parents responded saying they could only afford up to 25
percent of their child’s education, so it’s clear that parents and
students will need to discuss how to fill that gap. Having these
conversations around paying for college is a great first step to
helping children learn how to manage their finances.”
A large majority of parents, 82 percent, said they are very or
somewhat knowledgeable about the cost of a college education and
most say their child understands how much debt they will graduate
with. In fact, 92 percent of parents think it is very or somewhat
important to include their child in discussions on financial
literacy as it relates to paying for college.
Discover Student Loans offers tools and resources to help
parents and students understand the college financial process. For
more information about Discover Student Loans, please visit
www.discover.com/student-loans.
About the Survey
The Discover national survey of 1,000 adults who have children
16 to 18 years old who are planning to attend college was conducted
March 17-20, 2017, by Rasmussen Reports, an independent survey
research firm (http://www.rasmussenreports.com). The margin of
sampling error was +/-3 percentage points with a 95 percent level
of confidence.
About Discover
Discover Financial Services (NYSE: DFS) is a direct banking and
payment services company with one of the most recognized brands in
U.S. financial services. Since its inception in 1986, the company
has become one of the largest card issuers in the United States.
The company issues the Discover card, America's cash rewards
pioneer, and offers private student loans, personal loans, home
equity loans, checking and savings accounts and certificates of
deposit through its direct banking business. It operates the
Discover Network, with millions of merchant and cash access
locations; PULSE, one of the nation's leading ATM/debit networks;
and Diners Club International, a global payments network with
acceptance in more than 185 countries and territories. For more
information, visit www.discover.com/company.
National Survey of 1,000 Adults With Children 16-18 Years Old Who
Have Children Who Are Planning on Going to College Conducted March
17-20, 2017 By Rasmussen Reports Margin of Sampling Error, +/- 3
percentage points with a 95% level of confidence Commissioned by
Discover Student Loans
How important
is college to your child’s future? 2012
2013 2014 2015
2016 2017 Very important 81% 87%
85% 81% 82% 83% Somewhat important
14% 11% 11% 14% 13% 14%
Not very important 3% 1% 3% 3%
3% 2% Not at all important 1% 0% 1%
0% 1% 1% Not sure 1% 0%
0% 0% 1% 0%
Beyond tuition, how
knowledgeable do you feel about the entire cost of a college
education these days? 2012 2013
2014 2015 2016
2017 Very knowledgeable 48% 49% 48%
46% 46% 40% Somewhat knowledgeable 39%
39% 42% 39% 40% 42% Not very
knowledgeable 11% 9% 8% 12% 11%
14% Not at all knowledgeable 2% 3% 2%
3% 2% 2% Not sure 1% 0%
0% 1% 1% 2%
Will you be helping your child pay for his or her college
education? 2012 2013
2014 2015 2016
2017 Yes 74% 81% 77% 75%
78% 74% No 15% 12% 16% 16%
13% 16% Not sure 11% 8% 7%
9% 10% 9%
How worried are you about having enough money to help pay for
your child’s college education? 2012
2013 2014 2015
2016 2017 Very worried 47% 47%
44% 45% 43% 40% Somewhat worried
28% 32% 30% 33% 32% 34% Not very
worried 17% 15% 18% 15% 17%
18% Not at all worried 6% 6% 7%
6% 7% 8% Not sure 1% 0% 1%
1% 1% 1%
How much of your child’s education can you afford?
2012 2013 2014
2015 2016 2017 None of it
24% 21% 21% 24% 22% 21% Up to
25% 29% 29% 30% 31% 29%
29% Up to 50% 15% 18% 19% 18%
18% 16% Up to 75% 10% 12% 11% 8%
10% 9% All of it 13% 11% 11%
9% 11% 13% Not sure 10% 9%
8% 10% 10% 11%
Where will most of the money come from to pay for
your child’s college education? 2012
2013 2014 2015
2016 2017 529 savings plan 12%
11% 11% 12% 9% 13% Family savings
24% 27% 29% 25% 27% 27%
Student loans 28% 29% 29% 29%
32% 29% A second job 5% 6% 5% 5%
5% 6% 2nd mortgage or refinance 3% 3%
2% 3% 3% 3% Retirement funds 4%
4% 6% 3% 4% 2% Some other source
13% 12% 10% 13% 12% 12%
Not sure 11% 10% 7% 9% 9%
9%
If your child had to rely on
student loans or other types of loans for college, how likely are
you to help them pay back the loans? 2012
2013 2014 2015
2016 2017 Very likely 22% 25%
24% 25% 26% 25% Somewhat likely
33% 33% 28% 33% 35% 30% Not very
likely 28% 25% 30% 28% 24%
27% Not at all likely 13% 13% 12%
11% 10% 11% Not sure 4% 4%
6% 4% 5% 6%
Which do you consider the most reliable source of
information on paying for college? 2012
2013 2014 2015
2016 2017 Guidance counselors in high school
7% 6% 7% 7% 11% 11%
Financial aid offices of colleges 47% 47% 44%
43% 40% 44% Banks and other lenders 3%
3% 3% 4% 5% 3% Personal
financial advisors 11% 13% 14% 14%
14% 12% Friends and family 6% 8%
9% 7% 8% 8% The Internet 6% 7%
6% 6% 5% 6% Some other source 8%
8% 8% 9% 8% 8% Not sure
11% 9% 9% 11% 9% 9%
How much responsibility should your
child have in paying for their college education?
2012 2013 2014
2015 2016 2017 All of it
12% 13% 15% 15% 16% 16% most of
it 27% 29% 32% 30% 32%
30% Some of it 48% 48% 43% 46%
40% 40% None of it 10% 7% 8% 7%
9% 9% Not sure 3% 3% 2%
3% 3% 4%
Is
earning potential after graduation more or less important to your
child’s education than his or her major? 2012
2013 2014 2015
2016 2017 More important 38% 42%
40% 47% 43% 41% Less important
21% 22% 21% 19% 21% 23% About as
important 32% 31% 30% 27% 30%
29% Not sure 10% 5% 9% 7%
6% 6%
Are you limiting your child’s
college choices based on price? 2013
2014 2015 2016
2017 Yes 49% 44% 48% 43%
41% No 40% 48% 41% 46% 50% Not
sure 11% 9% 11% 11% 9%
Are you more likely to help fund your child’s
education if they major in a field that has a higher likelihood of
them landing a job? 2013 2014
2015 2016 2017 Yes
42% 33% 44% 42% 39% No 44%
53% 43% 42% 45% Not sure 14%
14% 13% 16% 16%
Is your child planning to use student loans to pay for their
college education? 2013 2014
2015 2016 2017 Yes 50%
52% 54% 55% 49% No 32%
28% 26% 27% 29% Not sure 18% 20%
20% 18% 22%
Answered By
Those Who Plan to Use Student Loans: Does your child plan to use
federal student loans, private loans or a combination of both?
2013 2014 2015
2016 2017 Federal 32% 38%
38% 34% 37% Private 4% 3% 5%
6% 6% Combination of both 54% 48%
47% 50% 52% Not sure 10% 11%
9% 10% 5%
Answered By Those Who Plan to
Use Student Loans: How worried are you that student loan debt may
affect your child’s ability to buy a house, car or some other large
purchase after graduation? 2014
2015 2016 2017 Very worried
55% 58% 50% 49% Somewhat worried
30% 25% 31% 33% Not very worried 12%
14% 16% 14% Not at all worried 3%
3% 3% 3% Not sure 0% 0%
0% 1%
If taking out loans in your
child’s name, does your child understand how much debt they will
graduate with? 2013 2014
2015 2016 2017 Fully understand
40% 42% 39% 41% 38% Somewhat
understands 32% 32% 32% 34% 32%
Doesn’t understand 15% 14% 14% 12%
17% Not sure 13% 12% 15% 13%
13%
When thinking about
the options to reduce the cost of college for your child, which of
the following do you think is most effective?
2015 2016 2017 Attending a
community college 29% 30% 27% Attending a
public university versus a private university 33% 31%
33% Deferring college for a year 1% 2%
3% Having your child live at home while attending college
12% 11% 11% Working part-time while attending college
14% 14% 13% Not sure 11% 12%
12%
How knowledgeable are you about the
differences between federal and private loans?
2013 2014 2015
2016 2017 Very knowledgeable 29%
30% 29% 32% 28% Somewhat knowledgeable
39% 40% 37% 32% 38% Not very
knowledgeable 24% 22% 26% 26%
25% Not at all knowledgeable 6% 7% 7%
8% 7% Not sure 1% 1% 2% 2%
2%
Did you
complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid?
2016 2017 Yes 44% 45% No
48% 48% Not sure 8% 7%
Answered By 440 Adults Who Have Kids Going
To Kids Who Filled Out the FAFSA Application: How difficult was
filling out the FAFSA? 2016 2017 1
- very easy 9% 7% 2 15% 10% 3
36% 36% 4 26% 27% 5 - very difficult
15% 20%
How
many times have you had a discussion with your child about how to
pay for their college education? 2016
2017 Never 12% 10% Once 8% 9%
2-3 times 27% 29% 4-6 times 17% 18%
More than 6 times 33% 31% Not sure 3%
2%
How important is including
your child in discussions on financial literacy as it relates to
paying for college? 2016 2017 Very
important 76% 74% Somewhat important 17%
18% Not very important 3% 3% Not at all
important 2% 3% Not sure 2% 2%
In deciding which school your child might
attend, what factor is most important? 2017
School reputation 9% Academic program 50% Cost
31% Size 1% Location 6% Not sure 3%
When do you expect your family to make a
decision on which school your child might attend?
2017 Upon early decision acceptance 21% Upon regular
acceptance 34% Upon scholarship award notification
22% At or near decision deadline 8% Not sure 15%
How worried are you that taking on
your child’s debt will impact your retirement plan?
2017 Very worried 31% Somewhat worried 28% Not
very worried 22% Not at all worried 14% Not sure
4%
View source
version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170531005194/en/
Discover Financial ServicesSusan J.
Villalobos224-405-5344susanvillalobos@discover.com@Discover_News
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