Parents — particularly lower-income ones — all too often begin considering ways to pay for college late in the game, and many consider college to be unaffordable.

• 61% of all parents of incoming college freshmen ("respondents") in 2007 said that they began initial discussions about the best way to pay for college after the child entered high school, down from 69% in 2006.
• Fewer low-income respondents (those earning less than $50,000 annually) began planning to pay for college before the child entered high school than their wealthier counterparts: 24% of low-income respondents began tuition discussions before high school, compared to 42% of high-income respondents (those earning $75,000 or more per year).
• High-income respondents got an earlier start, but more than half (53%) still waited until their child was in high school to begin discussions.
• Few families started discussing college payment early enough to save over the course of a decade or more: 12% of all respondents began initial discussions about college payment before the child began elementary school; another 12% began when the child was in elementary school (up from 11% and 9% in 2006, respectively).
• 82% of all respondents surveyed in 2007 believed that a college education is worth the cost, although fewer than half (42%) believed that college is affordable. This trend persisted across income categories, and is similar to 2006 survey results, when 84% said a college was worth the cost, and 39% said it was affordable.

Many respondents would begin saving for college earlier if given the opportunity; more than half of those polled relied on cash/savings as the most frequently used college payment option.

• When asked what they would do differently when paying for their child’s education, 32% of respondents said they would begin saving for college earlier (No. 1 response). Another 31% said they would not do anything differently [this question was not asked in 2006].
• The college payment option most frequently used by 2007 respondents was cash/savings (54%, an increase from 52% in 2006), followed by federal loans such as Stafford or PLUS (40%, up from 30% in 2006). 20% of all respondents reported using private loans, up from 11% in 2006.
• Low-income respondents were less likely to pay for college using cash/savings: 37% of low-income respondents reported paying out-of-pocket, compared to 65% of high-income respondents.
• Respondents from low-income and middle-income (those earning between $50,000 and $74,999 annually) families were more likely to borrow either a federal or private loan than their upper-income peers: 59% of low-income respondents borrowed, compared to 78% of middle-income respondents and 50% of high-income respondents.

Although most families are aware of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), too many families — particularly those in the highest income bracket — still opt not to file one.

• While 80% of all respondents said they have submitted a FAFSA, 10% said they have not and do not intend to do so. 15% of high-income respondents say they have not or do not intend to file a FAFSA (compared to 18% in 2006), whereas 3% of low-income respondents said they have not or do not intend to file a FAFSA.
• 88% of all respondents were aware of the need to file a FAFSA in order to qualify for key types of financial aid (compared to 93% in 2006). Low-income respondents’ awareness of the need to file a FAFSA was similarly high (91%, compared to 92% in 2006).
• When asked to name the best source of information about paying for college, the largest group of respondents (35%) named the college financial aid office, 19% named the high school guidance counselor, 19% named themselves, 18% named the Internet, 3% named private counselors, and 3% named financial planners.

Once again, paying for college is a family affair, with expectations of shared responsibility.

• 81% of all respondents discussed the tuition bill with their families two or more times during the summer before it was due; 11% never discussed the tuition bill. This is similar to 2006 findings, when 84% discussed the bill twice or more, and 9% never discussed it.
• 89% of high-income respondents believe that students will learn responsibility from paying back student loans, compared to 91% of middle-income respondents and 95% of low-income respondents.
• 73% of all respondents believe paying for college is the responsibility of both the parent and the student (compared to 71% in 2006), 17% believe it is the parent’s responsibility and 8% believe it is the student’s responsibility.
• While 17% of all respondents believe it is the parent’s responsibility to pay for college, 45% of all respondents said parents should pay half or more of the tuition bill (down from 58% in 2006) and another 6% believe parents should try to pay 100% of the bill.

School location, rather than cost, is still the top priority for families of incoming college freshmen.

• Respondents named "location of the school" as their top priority when their child was applying for college (34%), followed by "scholarship availability" (19%), "cost of school" (15%) and "admissions ranking" (14%).
• This response is similar to 2006, when 32% cited "location" as the top priority, followed by "scholarship availability" (18%), "cost of school" (17%), and "admissions ranking" (11%).
• "Location of the school" was named the top priority across all income groups (rather than cost or scholarship availability): Low-income respondents ranked "location of the school" highest (32%), followed by scholarship availability (26%) and cost of school (23%). Just 6% ranked "admissions ranking" as the top priority.

Cash-strapped lower-income students are more likely to work during school.

• Overall, 68% of 2007 respondents say their child will work during the school year (down from 71% in 2006). However, 70% in 2007 said their student would be limiting the amount that they work to 20 hours per week or less, an amount not generally considered detrimental to academics [this was not asked in 2006].
• Lowest-income-bracket students are considerably more likely to work during the school year than students from the highest income group. 87% of parents in the lowest income group reported their students would work during school compared to 59% of parents in the highest income group. Nonetheless, when asked how many hours per week they would work, the proportion of students working over 20 hours per week was fairly low across all income categories (ranging from 16% to 19%).