Most Parents Expect Their Kids to Attend College

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Joan Oleck -- School Library Journal, 4/24/2008 2:05:00 PM

School budgets may be disintegrating and college costs spiraling, but U.S. parents still have high hopes for little Susie and Johnny: According to a new federal report, 91 percent of parents expect their middle-to-high-school children to attend college or continue their education in some way.

"Parent Expectations and Planning for College," released by the National Center for Educational Statistics [nces.ed.gov/], reports that nine in 10 students in grades six through 12, or about 91 percent, had parents who expected them to continue their education beyond high school. Of these students, 65 percent had parents who expected them to earn a bachelor's degree or higher, and 26 percent had parents who expected them to complete some postsecondary education.

In terms of gender breakdown, more girls (69 percent) than boys (62 percent) had parents who expected them to finish college. An ethnic breakdown showed that 80 percent of Asian students had parents who expected them to finish college, compared to 66 percent of White students, 64 percent of Black and Hispanic students, and 53 percent of other, non-Hispanic students.

The study sample included about 6,800 students in grades six through 12. Their parents were surveyed as part of the 2003 Parent and Family Involvement (PFI) in Education Survey of the National Household Education Surveys Program. The program provides descriptive data on the educational activities of the U.S. population.

According to data from the 2003 survey, income also influenced parents' expectations of extended education. A higher percentage of students (83 percent) from families with a household income greater than $75,000 had parents who expected them to finish college than did students from families with smaller household incomes. The percentages of parents anticipating higher education were 51 percent for incomes of $25,000 or less; 56 percent for $25,001 to $50,000; and 70 percent for $50,001 up to $75,000.

The optimism of immigrant families also was highlighted in the study. Some 72 percent of students whose parents did not mainly speak English at home had parents who expected them to finish college, compared to 65 percent whose parents mainly spoke English. And 76 percent of students whose parents were not born in the United States had parents who expected them to finish college, versus 63 percent whose parents were born here.