To gain a better understanding of how college students are coping during these unprecedented times, as well as how the situation is affecting students’ personal finances, WalletHub conducted a nationally representative survey of current college students. We asked them about everything from how their opinion of their financial future has changed during the pandemic to how they would grade their personal finances. You can find the complete results in the infographic below.
Key Stats
- More than 6.4 million college students get help from their parents with their credit card bills.
- The coronavirus pandemic is holding 8.4 million college students back financially right now.
- 2X more students from medium income households compared to students from high income households say lack of financial literacy holds them back the most.
- 15% more students would grade their personal finance with an A in 2020 vs 2019.
- 14% more students considered themselves savers in 2020 vs. 2019.
Survey Methodology
This report reflects the results of a nationally representative online survey of nearly 300 respondents.
After we collected all responses, we normalized the data by gender and income so the sample would reflect U.S. demographics.
Full Details Overall
| Has the coronavirus pandemic changed the way you feel about your financial future? | |
|---|---|
| Yes | 66% |
| No | 34% |
| Do you think the coronavirus pandemic will make it harder for you to get a job? | |
| Yes | 68% |
| No | 32% |
| What is holding you back the most financially? | |
| Coronavirus Pandemic | 43% |
| Lack of Money | 42% |
| Lack of Financial Literacy | 15% |
| Has your financial literacy improved during the coronavirus pandemic? | |
| Yes | 61% |
| No | 39% |
| What has the coronavirus pandemic taught you the most about? | |
| Savings | 40% |
| Economy | 22% |
| Employment | 22% |
| Stock market | 10% |
| Debt | 6% |
| What grade would you give your personal finance? | |
| B | 47% |
| A | 30% |
| C | 16% |
| D | 4% |
| F | 3% |
| Do you consider yourself a spender or a saver? | |
| Saver | 70% |
| Spender | 30% |
| Do your parents help pay your credit card bills? | |
| No | 57% |
| Yes | 43% |
| Has the coronavirus pandemic changed the way you feel about education in general? | |
| Yes | 67% |
| No | 33% |
Note: Percentages may not total 100% due to rounding.