Survey Reveals Startling Disconnect Between Teens’ and Parents’ Views on Paying For College etc

Junior Achievement USA® and The Allstate Foundation survey also indicates that young females anticipate lower potential earning power
By: Junior Achievement
 
SARASOTA, Fla. - April 16, 2015 - PRLog -- Junior Achievement USA® (JA) and The Allstate Foundation today released findings from the 2015 Teens & Personal Finance Survey. The 2015 survey reveals that nearly half of teens (48 percent) think their parents will help pay for college, when only 16 percent of parents (of teens) report planning to pay for post-secondary education.

“Based on this year’s findings, it is obvious that parents and teens need to have honest conversations about money management, including paying for college,” said Kristin Schreiner, Executive Director of Junior Achievement of Sarasota and Manatee counties. “Together as a family, it is important to develop a plan for life after high school – whatever that may be for your family. As an organization that strives to empower all young people to own their economic success, JA will continue to help open these channels.”

Junior Achievement USA has commissioned the Teens & Personal Finance Survey for the last 16 years, partnering with The Allstate Foundation since 2005. The 2015 study was conducted online by Harris Poll in January 2015 on behalf of Junior Achievement. The online study surveyed 801 parents of teens aged 13 to 18 years old and 800 teens aged 13 to 18 years old. This was the first time in the survey’s 16-year history in which parents were included in the personal finance discussion. “This year’s survey clearly shows parents play a critical role in helping their kids understand how to manage money and become financially savvy,” said Jim Haskins, executive vice president, Allstate, and board member of Junior Achievement of Chicago. “Talking with our kids about money management at an early age prepares them to more confidently handle financial decisions in the future.”

Other key findings from the survey include:

·     Teen girls are more likely than boys to say their parents don’t talk to them enough about money management (40 percent to 24 percent) and paying for college (34 percent to 23 percent).

·        When asked about their future earning power at their first “real” job, 24 percent of teen girls think they will make $15,000 or less, while only 16 percent of boys feel the same. Moms also are significantly more likely than dads to say their child will earn $15,000 or less (26 percent to 17 percent).

·     Eighty-four percent of teens report looking to their parents for information on how to manage money, but more than a third (34 percent) of parents says their family’s approach to financial matters is to not discuss money with their children.

·   Millennial parents, ages 18 to 34, are the least likely to be confident about explaining money management to their kids: 60 percent report feeling confident, while 76 percent of parents aged 35 to 44 and 79 percent of parents aged 45 to 54 report feeling the same.

·    Interest in community college is on the rise. When asked to consider the rising cost of college, a larger number of teens in 2015 are considering attending a local community college instead of another college or university: 22 percent in 2014 rose to 29 percent in 2015.

·    Teen boys are more likely than teen girls to report that their parents help them keep track of money (31 percent to 20 percent). Teen boys also are more likely than teen girls to report they learned to take care of money from parents (88 percent to 80 percent).

·     The number of teens who think their parents don’t spend enough time talking to them about managing money significantly rose (21 percent in 2014 to 32 percent in 2015).

An executive summary of the 2015 Junior Achievement USA/Allstate Foundation Teens & Personal Finance Survey is available at https://www.juniorachievement.org/web/ja-usa/home.


About Junior Achievement of Sarasota and Manatee Counties

Junior Achievement of Sarasota and Manatee Counties is the area’s premier organization dedicated to inspiring and preparing young people to succeed in a global economy. Through a dedicated volunteer network, Junior Achievement provides in-school and after-school programs for students, which focus on three key content areas: financial literacy, work readiness, and entrepreneurship. Today, Junior Achievement reaches more than 6,000 students in Sarasota and Manatee counties. For more information about Junior Achievement and this story, contact Kristin Schreiner at Kristin.Schreiner@ja.org or 813.490.4498.

About The Allstate Foundation

Established in 1952, The Allstate Foundation is an independent, charitable organization made possible by subsidiaries of The Allstate Corporation . Through partnerships with nonprofit organizations across the country, The Allstate Foundation brings the relationships, reputation and resources of Allstate to support innovative and lasting solutions that enhance people’s well-being and prosperity. With a focus on building financial independence for domestic violence survivors, empowering youth and celebrating the charitable community involvement of Allstate agency owners and employees, The Allstate Foundation works to bring out the good in people’s lives. For more information, visit www.AllstateFoundation.org.

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