2. Student Circumstances and the Learning Experience 2.1 Student Finances and Student Debt

Transcription

1 2. Student Circumstances and the Learning Experience 2.1 Student Finances and Student Debt 1998 UVic Undergraduate Student Survey 6

2 (a) How do Students Finance Their With their own savings and income: Studies? 82% rely to some extent on their own savings or income; 21% rely primarily (67%+) on their own savings or income; 11% rely exclusively (95%+) on their own savings or income Overall, students contribute about 37% of their educational costs through their savings or income The level of self-support varies; for example: from 26% (year 1) to almost 40% (year 4) from 31% (not employed) to 69% (working more than 20 hours/week) from 35% (those studying continuously) to 50% (those previously stopping out) 1998 UVic Undergraduate Student Survey 7

3 With contributions from parents or other relatives: 65% rely to some extent on parental/relative support; 23% rely primarily (67%+) on parental support; 10% rely exclusively (95%+) on parental support Parents/other relatives contribute 34%, on average, to students educational costs; this percentage varies: from 44% (year 1 students) to 26% (year 4 students) from 40% (non working students) to 12% (students working 20+hours/week) from 59% of visa student expenses to 32% of resident student expenses 1998 UVic Undergraduate Student Survey 8

4 With contributions from student loans: 37% rely to some extent on loans (this session)*; 17% rely primarily (67%+) on loans; 4% rely exclusively (95%+) on loans Student loans contribute 21% to student expenses overall, but 62% to the expenses of students who actually have loans Dependence on student loans varies by: year of study (loans contribute an average 13% of costs in year 1 versus 28% in year 4) faculty (15% in Engineering versus 31% in Education) living arrangements (7% of costs for students living with their parents versus 25% of costs for students living outside their parents home) * though 40% have accumulated student loan debt at some point in the past 1998 UVic Undergraduate Student Survey 9

5 And with contributions from scholarships, bursaries, and other funds: 19% rely to some extent on scholarships or bursaries; 16% rely to some extent on other sources of funds Less than 2% rely primarily or exclusively on scholarships, bursaries or other funding sources For students with scholarships or bursaries, over one-fourth of total costs are covered by the scholarship or bursary Scholarships and bursaries represent 10% of total income for first year students (but only 4% for others); students with high secondary averages, who have studied continuously, and who live in the family home rely more heavily on scholarship/bursary income 1998 UVic Undergraduate Student Survey 10

6 For UVic students overall, then, each dollar of educational costs is funded on average: 37 by students themselves 34 by their parents 21 from student loans 4 from scholarships or bursaries 4 from other sources 1998 UVic Undergraduate Student Survey 11

7 (b) Are Students Concerned About Their Financial Situation? Only 8% of students don t worry at all about money; 24% consider money a minor concern ; 36% view it as a moderate concern, and 32% see it as a major concern The least concerned students have a higher tendency to live with their parents (and therefore experience lower educational costs), have higher secondary averages (and proportionately higher scholarship income), are not working and are not looking for work, and are relatively free of debt ($1677 average debt for students reporting no or minor concerns; $9896 for students reporting major concerns) 44% of students who have previously stopped out report having major financial concerns, compared to 21% for the entire sample UVic Undergraduate Student Survey 12

8 (c) What is the Overall Student Loan Situation? 40% of all UVic students report having a student loan The average loan is $13,871 (for students with loans) and $5,521 (averaged across all undergraduate students) Debt Load (All Students): average debt =$5521 Debt (Borrowing Students): average debt=$13871 >=$30K $20K to <$30K $15K to <$20K $10K to <$15K $5k to <$10K < $5K no loan Percent >=$30K $20K to <$30K $15K to <$20K $10K to <$15K $5k to <$10K < $5K Percent 1998 UVic Undergraduate Student Survey 13

9 (d) Do Borrowing Rates and Loan Balances Differ by Student Group? The percentage of students holding loans (the borrowing rate) and the mean loan balance among borrowers varies by faculty, year of study, home location, employment status, secondary school academic performance, and other factors. Some examples follow: 1998 UVic Undergraduate Student Survey 14

10 Student loan summary for selected student subgroups: Percent Average Loan Average Loan Student Subgroup With Loans (All Students) (Borrowers) living with parents 16.9 $1,375 $8,154 no/minor financial concerns 16.7 $1,677 $10,016 major financial concerns 61.3 $9,896 $16,137 previously "stopped out" (4th year) 58.2 $7,995 $13,734 continuous enrolment (4th year) 46.6 $8,464 $18,145 Faculty of Education (highest %) 59.9 $9,491 $15,858 Faculty of H&SD (2nd highest %) 44.7 $8,269 $18,516 Faculty of Engineering (lowest %) 32.9 $4,454 $13,557 Faculty of Business (2nd lowest %) 34.0 $4,628 $13,621 continued 1998 UVic Undergraduate Student Survey 15

11 Percent Average Loan Average Loan Student Subgroup With Loans (All Students) (Borrowers) 1st year 21.8 $1,908 $8,738 2nd year 31.9 $2,945 $9,220 3rd year 47.7 $6,790 $14,236 4th year 49.4 $8,352 $16,909 5th/6th year 58.6 $12,341 $21,053 expecting to graduate this year 51.1 $9,098 $17,788 special needs/disability 57.1 $9,736 $17,057 mature students 50.5 $9,161 $18,125 traditional students (relaxed def'n) 30.9 $3,242 $10,501 single parents 73.0 $24,241 $33,191 parents with spouses 47.1 $9,856 $20, UVic Undergraduate Student Survey 16

12 (e) What are the Characteristics of High Debt ($20K+) Students? About 10% of all students have accumulated high (greater than $20K) debt; this proportion varies by subgroup: previous technical institute enrolment 24% private institution enrolment 33% associate degree earned 28% 1 or 2 years of previous post-secondary 11% 3 or more years of previous post-secondary 25% living with parents 1% single parent students 58% spoused parent students 24% continued UVic Undergraduate Student Survey 17

13 having previously held jobs lasting more than 1 year 17% currently working less than 20 hours per week 15% having no parental support 18% having parental support 5% special needs/circumstances (self-assessed + equity groups) 21% enrolled in first year 2% enrolled in fourth year 17% enrolled in fifth/sixth year 33% mature students 21% 1998 UVic Undergraduate Student Survey 18

14 (f) Summary The issue of student indebtedness and the problem of excessive debt are experienced differently by different student subgroups: a minority of students are prone to a high level of indebtedness (e.g. single parents, students with lengthy post-secondary activity, students without parental support) about half of all students graduate with no student loan debt lying in between are students with varying levels of manageable debt The data suggest that debt load is a function of both: socioeconomic status (as measured/inferred by reliance on parents, previous work history, current employment, living arrangements, family status) study behaviour (total years of post-secondary education, previous and planned stopout patterns, full vs. part time study) 1998 UVic Undergraduate Student Survey 19

15 continuous study/rapid degree completion do not necessarily contribute to low debt load: students who graduate after stopping out or studying parttime have often accumulated considerable debt; but they might have been more indebted had they attempted a rapid study strategy the factors that place students at risk of serious indebtedness, and the policy responses to them, warrant further research attention 1998 UVic Undergraduate Student Survey 20