Attitudes toward money and post-secondary education

Teens and Money Survey

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIFE AFTER HIGH SCHOOL

SAVING FOR COLLEGE

APPENDIX

3

12

18

…….... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .……..

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Life after high school

Seven in 10 (70%) teens believe that going to college is essential (36%) or very important (34%) in achieving their career aspirations

Q300. Base: All Teens n=1,000; No college n=151; Suburban n=320

How important do you believe a college degree is to achieving

your career aspirations?

• Two in 10 (22%) teens who are college age but not at college (“No College”, below), believe that college is essential for achieving their career aspirations

36

34

15

5 4

6

Essential Very important Somewhat important

Somewhat unimportant Very unimportant I don't know

No College: 22%

Suburban: 43%

%

Teens

65 4

17

4 10

Yes, I expect to goto college

Yes, I expect to goto trade school

Yes, I expect to goto college or tradeschool but I'm notsure which

No

I don't know

Two-thirds of teens (65%) expect to go to college

Q310. Base: All pre-college Teens n=711; Mid-Atlantic n=116; Suburban n=247

Q312. Base: All pre-college Teens expecting to go to college and Teens at college n=719; At College n=138; Reside in top 10 city n= 163, Suburban n=260 (Multiple responses allowed)

Do you expect to go to college or trade school?

Why are you going/expecting to go to college?

• Almost 2 in 10 (17%) teens, including 25% of Mid-Atlantic teens, are still undecided between college and trade school • The main reasons for expecting to go to college are that it is felt to be the best way of achieving career goals (72%) and the best

way to earn a high income (53%) • Parental influence is an important factor for 45% Teens expecting to go to college, including 54% of teens in suburban America

Mid-Atlantic: 25%

Suburban: 71%

%

2

6

11

17

18

40

45

52

53

72

0 20 40 60 80

Other reasons

No particular reason

Not ready to start working life

I can live away from home

Don't know what job I want yet

It is an experience I don't want to miss

My parents/guardians want me to go

Interested in further study

Best way to earn a high income

Best way of achieving career goals

At College: 38%

Reside in top 10 city: 37%

Suburban: 54%

Suburban: 60%

Teens

Three-quarters (75%) of teens not expecting to go to college say they would go if college was free

Q315. Base: All no college and pre-college Teens not expecting to go to college n=208; No College Teens n=151

Would you go to college if it was free to do so?

• Eight in 10 (83%) teens who are of college age, and have not gone to college (“No College”) say they would attend college if it was free

75%

14%

11%

Yes No I don't know

No College: 83%

No College: 9%

Teens

%

Almost 4 in 10 (37%) teens have considered an associate degree at a community college

Q330. Base: All Teens n=1,000; No college n=151

Multiple responses allowed

37

20

17

16

15

5

32

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50

An associate degree at a community college

A technical degree/Trade school (e.g. plumbing, welding, cookery, auto repair)

Enrolling in online university

Teaching yourself using online resources

A fast-track professional program (e.g. Coding School)

Some other alternative education

None of the above

• Half (50%) of teens who are of college age but have not gone to college (“No college”, below) have considered an associate degree, and a third (33%) have considered a technical degree or trade school

No College: 50%

No College: 33%

No College: 23%

No College: 23%

Are you considering/did you consider any

of the following post-secondary educational programs?

%

Teens

Four in 10 (39%) Pre-College teens expecting to go to college have not considered anything else but a traditional 4-year college route

Q395. Base: All pre-college Teens expecting to go to college n=581; Reside in top 10 city n=122; Reside elsewhere n=459

Multiple responses allowed

Have you considered any of the following?

35

30

19

39

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45

Taking a gap year between high school and college

Completing a 2-year degree instead of a 4-year degree

Delaying college due to the expense of going to college

None of the above

Gen Z

• Over a third (35%) have considered taking a gap year between high school and college, while 3 in 10 (30%) have considered completing a 2-year degree instead of a 4-year degree

• Taking a gap year is more popular among those who do not live in one of the top 10 largest American cities (37%) than among those who do (27%)

Reside in top 10 city: 27% Reside elsewhere: 37%

Teens

%

8

14

3

4

7

13

7

13

18

22

9

10

12

9

12

6

6

3

18

7

6 7 8 9 10

Strongly disagree Strongly agree

It is more important to me

to go to a college I can afford than

one with the best reputation

Colleges charging higher fees

provide a better standard of

education

8 to 10: 15%

Strongly disagree

8 to 10: 36%

Strongly agree

1 to 3: 31%

1 to 3: 18%

6 7 8 9 10 1 2 3 4 5

1 2 3 4 5

To what extent do agree or disagree with the following statements?

%

More than a third (36%) of teens favor affordability over reputation

Q370. Base: All college and pre-college Teens expecting to go to college n=719; Mid-Atlantic n=121, Reside in top 10 city n=163, Urban n=284;

At College Teens n=138

• Three in 10 (31%) teens disagree with the idea that colleges charging higher fees provide a better standard of education. Four in 10 (40%) Mid-Atlantic Teens feel the same way

• Conversely, over 2 in 10 (23%) of those who reside in a top 10 city and those in urban areas (21%) strongly agree that colleges charging higher fees provide a better standard of education

At College: 43%

Teens

Reside in top 10 city: 23%

Urban: 21% Mid-Atlantic: 40%

Seven in 10 (70%) teens first consider a program that fits their needs when selecting a college

Q365. Base: All pre-college Teens expecting to go to college and at college n=719; Pre-College n= 581; At College n=138; Reside in top 10 city n=163; Urban n=284; Suburban n=260;

Mid-Atlantic n=121. Multiple responses allowed

Which of the following will you consider/did

you consider when selecting a college?

70

65

64

47

46

18

14

8

4

3

2

1

2

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

Program that fits my needs

Location

Affordability

Availability of financial aid

Reputation

Sports team

The school my friends are attending

The school one of parents/grandparents/sibling attended

Living away from my parents/guardians

Not liking/enjoying the courses you choose

Getting along with roommates

Other

None of the above

Teens

• The second-most important consideration is location (65%), followed very closely by affordability (64%) • Suburban teens and Mid-Atlantic teens are more sensitive to affordability when choosing a college than other teens

(respectively 70% and 74%)

At College: 55%

Teens

Reside in top 10 city: 55%

Urban: 57% Suburban: 70%

Mid-Atlantic: 74%

%

Two in 10 (19%) teens main concern about going to college is struggling to pay tuition

Q340. Base: All pre-college Teens expecting to go to college and at college n=719; At College n=138; South n=190; West n=161

Which of the following is your biggest concern

about going to college (one answer only)?

19

15

13

11

10

7

6

5

4

4

3

2

2

0 5 10 15 20 25 30

Struggling to pay the tuition

Taking on too much debt

Finding a good job after college

Managing my time

Difficult coursework

Not knowing what I want to study

Availability of financial aid

Not being sure that I'll be admitted to the program of my choice

Fitting in/making friends

Living away from my parents/guardians

Not liking/enjoying the courses you choose

Getting along with roommates

None of the above

Teens

• The second-highest concern is “taking on too much debt” (15%), followed by “finding a good job after college” (13%) • Those who live in the South are more concerned (18%) than other teens about finding a good job after college, while

those who live in the West are much less concerned (9%) about their ability to find a good job after college

At College: 17%

South: 14%

South: 18% West: 9%

%

Teens

Saving for college

Six in 10 (63%) teens have saved some money to help pay for their college education

Q321 Base: All pre-college Teens expecting to go to college n=581; Midwest n=112

How much have you personally saved to

help pay for your college education?

10 8

14

30

37

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

$5,000 or more$3,000 to $4,999$1,000 to $2,999$1 to $999$0

Teens

• One in 10 (10%) say they have saved $5,000 or more for their college education, whereas almost 4 in 10 (37%) have not saved any money at all

• Midwest teens are more likely to have saved for their college education (73%) than in other regions of the Country

Midwest: 13%

Saved Anything: 63%

Midwest: 27%

Midwest: 73%

%

Teens

Half (49%) of teens say their college education is/will be paid with scholarships, grants and bursaries

Q385. Base: All pre-college Teens expecting to go to college and at college n=719; Pre-College n=581; At College n=138; Suburban n=260; Urban n=284; Midwest n=133

Multiple responses allowed

In which of the following ways is your college

education being/going to be paid for?

49

42

42

36

33

32

19

12

5

3

14

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

With scholarships/grants/bursaries

Working a part-time job while attending college

From your savings

From the savings of your parents/guardians

With financial aid from the Government or college

With student loans

Work study (i.e. a combination of study and paid employment in related field)

From the savings of your grandparents

From a 529 plan or similar owned by your parents/guardians

From a 529 plan or similar owned by your grandparents

I don't know

Teens

• Four in 10 (42%) are working/will work part-time while attending college and the same proportion (42%) plan to contribute to their education with their own savings, closely followed by their parents’ savings (36%)

• Midwest teens going, or expecting to go, to college are more likely to contribute their own savings (56%) than teens elsewhere

At College: 31%

At College: 41%

Urban: 31% Suburban: 44%

Midwest: 56%

Midwest: 25%

%

Teens

More than half of teens parents are currently saving (42%) or have already saved (14%) to pay for their college education – according to teens

Q320a/Q320b. Base: All pre-college Teens expecting to go to college n=581; Suburban Teens n=217

Are your parents/guardians currently saving to pay for you to go to college? Are your

grandparents currently saving to pay for you to go to college

42%

14%

24%

21% 13%

8%

40%

40%

I don’t know Will not/have not Have already saved Currently saving

• According to teens, only about 1 in 10 (13%) Grandparents are currently saving for grandchildren’s education. Four in 10 (40%) have not and will not be saving for grandchildren’s college education

• Almost half (48%) of Suburban teens’ parents are currently saving for their children’s college education

My parents/guardians … My Grandparents …

Suburban: 48%

%

Teens

51 48

65 65

56

41 41 38

12 7

10 6

17

27

14 16

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

Tuition Room and board Textbooks/course-relatedmaterial

Other living expenses

I pay all/some My parents pay all/some My grandparents pay all/some I don't know

More than half (56%) of teens expect their parents will pay tuition in full or partially

Q380. Base: All pre-college Teens expecting to go to college n=581; Suburban Teens n=217; Reside in top 10 city n=122

Multiple responses allowed

Who do you expect will pay for each of the following college-related expenses below, in full or

partially?

• Half of teens (51%) expect to contribute to their own tuition and slightly more (56%) expect their parents to contribute • Two-thirds of Teens expect to contribute to their textbooks (65%) and other living expenses (65%), while 4 in 10 expect

their parents to pay towards those costs (41% and 38%, respectively)

Reside in top 10 city: 37%

Suburban: 64%

Suburban: 51% Suburban: 48%

Suburban: 43%

%

Teens

9

17

51

23

Yes - we have discussed all these items

Partly - we have discussed some but not all

No – we have not discussed any of these items

Not applicable

One-third (33%) of teens have discussed with their parents who will pay for their college-related expenses

Q381. Base: All pre-college Teens expecting to go to college n=581; Suburban n=217; Midwest n=112

Were your answers to the previous question about who will pay for certain college-related

expenses based on discussions with your parents/guardians or grandparents?

• More than 4 in 10 (43%), including half (52%) of suburban teens, have discussed some college-related expenses with their parents, but not all

• Less than 1 in 10 (9%) have discussed college-related expenses with their grandparents

Midwest: 40%

33

43

19

5

Yes - we have discussed all these items

Partly - we have discussed some but not all

No – we have not discussed any of these items

Not applicable

Discussions with parents Discussions with grandparents

Suburban: 52%

%

Teens

Appendix

This survey was conducted by Head Solutions Group on behalf of TD Ameritrade Holding Corporation.1

The statistical margin of error for the total sample of N=1,000 teens within the target group is +/- 3.1 %.2 This means that in 19 out of 20 cases, survey results will differ by no more

than 3.1 percentage points in either direction from what would have been obtained by the opinions of all target group members in the U.S. Sample was drawn from major regions in

proportion to the U.S. Census.

1 Head Solutions Group (U.S.) Inc. and TD Ameritrade Holding Corporation are separate, unaffiliated companies and are not responsible for each other’s products and services. 2 Assumes survey participants are the same as non participants.

Note: Percentages may not add up to 100 due to rounding.

New England Mid-Atlantic

South Southwest West

1,001 Teens age 13-19

Online

Survey

March 17 to 22,

2017

Average time to

complete survey:

15 minutes

Head Solutions Group

on behalf of TD Ameritrade Holding

Corporation1

Midwest

WHEN WHAT WHO

CONDUCTED BY

Research Method

Throughout this report, arrows indicate a significant difference

between Young Millennials and Teens.

Green callouts show significant differences within Young

Millennials and yellow callouts show significant differences within

Teens. The categories studied for significant differences are

defined on the next slide.