Attending college is exciting, but it can also be scary at times, especially when you consider that most students aren't taught much about personal finance. Students must contend not only with doubts about finding a job that will allow them to earn a living wage after graduation but also with concerns about affording student loan payments and making limited funds last despite even more limited money-management skills.
To learn more about college students’ attitudes toward money, WalletHub conducted a nationally representative survey asking students about everything from how peer pressure has affected their spending to how well their schools are educating them about personal finance. You can find the complete results in the infographic below.
Key Stats
- No Loans for Pricey Schools: Nearly 1 in 3 students think the federal government should not provide loans to students who attend schools with expensive tuition.
- Tuition Crisis: 81% of students think college tuition is out of control.
- Questioning the Value of Tuition: Nearly 1 in 4 students think their tuition is not a good investment.
- Post-Grad Worries: The top post-graduation fear among students is not finding a job (44%), followed by student loan debt (33%) and credit card debt (18%).
- Leaving Campus Unprepared: 2 in 3 students think their school is not doing enough to educate them about personal finance.
- Peer Spending Pressure: 47% of students say they feel pressured by their peers to spend beyond their means.
Full Survey & Responses
| What is your biggest post-graduation fear? | |
|---|---|
| Not finding a job | 44% |
| Student loan debt | 33% |
| Credit card debt | 17% |
| Living with parents | 5% |
| Do you think your tuition is a good investment? | |
| Yes | 77% |
| No | 23% |
| Has a parent’s debt negatively impacted you? | |
| No | 64% |
| Yes | 36% |
| Is your school doing enough to educate you about personal finance? | |
| No | 65% |
| Yes | 35% |
| Do you feel pressured by your peers to spend beyond your means? | |
| No | 53% |
| Yes | 47% |
| Is college tuition out of control? | |
| Yes | 81% |
| No | 19% |
| Should the federal government provide loans to students who attend schools with expensive tuition? | |
| Yes | 70% |
| No | 30% |
| Is your generation good with money? | |
| No | 53% |
| Yes | 47% |
| Do you think you will repeat the same money mistakes your parents made? | |
| No | 73% |
| Yes | 27% |
| Would you give up social media in order to get a job? | |
| Yes | 81% |
| No | 19% |
Note: Percentages may not total 100% due to rounding.
Survey Methodology
This report reflects the results of a nationally representative online survey of over 190 students (full-time or part-time at a two-year or four-year school).
After we collected all responses, we normalized the data by age and gender so the sample would reflect U.S. demographics for the student-age population.
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