A recent survey of 500 high school students aged 16-17 has been published by the College Savings Foundation (CSF). CSF is a Washington, D.C.-based organization that represents investment and financial interests that focus on promoting 529 college investment plans. Investors in 529 plans enjoy various tax benefits, and contributions may only be used for educational costs.

The study demonstrates high school students’ college plans, savings strategies, funding expectations and parental involvement, and paints a picture of a new class of college students ready to shoulder the financial burden of their educations. This commitment is demonstrated by the 45 percent of students surveyed who have already begun to save for college on their own, 43 percent of whom have saved between $1,000 and $5,000. In addition, 66 percent of students expect to take out loans to cover costs, with 40 percent of them expecting to borrow a quarter to a half of their costs and another 30 percent who expect to borrow more than a half of educational expenses.

Financial aid also figured into future students’ perceptions of educational costs, with 85 percent planning to definitely or probably take advantage of financial aid and scholarships to meet their educational goals. Financial aid eligibility can be affected by 529 plans, which count as assets for dependent students applying for aid.

With the majority of those surveyed indicating plans to attend a public institution or community college, the next wave of college students will follow their predecessors, relying on a combination of state and federal funding sources on top of family contributions.

The study, which does not correlate responses with students’ socioeconomic status or race/ethnicity, is clearly in support of the CSF agenda to promote 529 accounts. Currently, this type of account is utilized by a particular portion of the population. According to United States Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, “only 5 percent of families with children in the middle of the income distribution have 529 accounts, while nearly one third of those in the top 5 percent of the distribution have them.”

Taking into consideration the difficult financial decisions Americans are faced with today, it is unlikely that middle to low-income families will take advantage of 529 accounts, which have recently come under scrutiny as investments underwent a challenging year. CSF’s agenda in D.C. to shift the responsibility of college funding to money paid into savings accounts rather than debt payments after college leaves out the commitment of state funding and state and federal financial aid, all of which are in danger of further deterioration.