New study shows college costs create "Boomerang Generation"

More college students are coming back home, trying to save money and pay off debt.

The findings from a Junior Achievement study have parents shocked and concerned, and JA jumping into action.

Leith Walk Elementary Middle School is one on JA's roster to visit and talk with, and the students are very aware of what it takes to be financially independent.

Walking around Mr. Jason Peinert's 7th grade class, you hear students discussing their futures, "you should always have a plan b," one boy said. "I want to like have my own house, my own property, I don't want to be bossed around by my mom," Imeah Curbean, 13, said, smiling.

Here they plan a path from education to a career that will support them in the future.

"My kids go through simulations with check registers, as well as understanding opportunity cost," Mr. Peinert said they also write essays on saving money for the future.

During the group discussion, one student echoed the sentiment, saying you wouldn't want to make decisions that put you in a corner. One of the big decisions, how to achieve higher education

JA's new study on financial literacy shows 75% of teens are worried about paying for college.

The next finding was disturbing, "only half of the kids said that they wanted to become independently financial from their parents," Senior Vice President Kim Fabian of the Central Maryland Junior Achievement Chapter said. 

Students told them, they understand the financial strains of paying for college and, for many, the reality after graduating is to move back home to save money and pay off debt, earning the nickname "Boomerang Generation".

"What we find works the best is when kids are actually doing things that will relate to what they'll be doing in the real world, so we try to create experiences while they're still in school that will help them learn those skills like communication, teamwork, how to be on time for things, what questions they should be asking, how to do a good job interview," Fabian said real world experience is key.

Junior Achievement has a list of schools and programs on their website to get involved in. Fabian says they hope this education will help future generations to become financially independent.

Below are the findings from the JA study: 

Only Half of Teens Say Gaining Financial Independence from Parents is a Goal for the Future

 

Financial Literacy Month Survey by Junior Achievement and AIG Delves into Teens’ Concerns about Money and Plans for the Future

 

(Owings Mills, MD) – April 4, 2018 – A new survey by Junior Achievement USA and AIG finds that only half of teens cite becoming financially independent of parents as one of their future goals. The 2018 JA Teens & Personal Finance Survey offers insight into how this generation is thinking about and planning for their financial future while emphasizing the value of financial literacy and personal finance programs.

 

“Millennials have sometimes been referred to as ‘the Boomerang Generation’ because during the economic recovery many moved back home with their parents after college due to a weak job market and student loan debt,” said Kim Fabian, Senior Vice President of Junior Achievement of Central Maryland. “This survey may be showing that today’s teens, Generation Z, could be seeing that as a situation they will encounter down the road.”

 

Among the survey results, teens stated their financial goals for the future include: graduating from college (75%), creating a savings plan (50%), affording international travel (37%), starting a business (30%), and retiring before age 65 (29%).

 

Teens were also asked to share their concerns for the future. Top concerns were: being able to pay for college (54%), finding a fulfilling and well-paying job (52%), not being able to afford their own home (49%), not having skills to manage money (42%), and not having savings for an emergency (41%). Girls who took the survey tended to have higher levels of concern than did the boys.

 

“It’s apparent from these findings that today’s youth think a lot about their financial futures, and are looking for ways to be better prepared to be successful at managing money,” said Laura Gallagher, Global Head of Corporate Citizenship at AIG. “One way AIG is helping on this front is by partnering with organizations like Junior Achievement to get young people the information they need to be more prepared and to feel more confident about their futures.”

 

According to the survey, 95 percent of teens would value personal finance programs being taught in their schools. Currently, most teens get their financial advice from their parents or guardians (72%), followed by online resources including social media (33%), family members other than parents or grandparents (31%), and friends (28%). Only 18 percent currently seek out this information from their high school guidance counselor and 14 percent from a professional financial advisor.

 

Methodological Notes:

The JA/AIG Survey was conducted by Wakefield Research (www.wakefieldresearch.com [email.prnewswire.com]) among 1,000 nationally representative U.S. teens, ages 13-18, who are not currently enrolled in college, between March 9 and March 16, 2018, using an email invitation and an online survey.  Results of any sample are subject to sampling variation. The magnitude of the variation is measurable and is affected by the number of interviews and the level of the percentages expressing the results. For the interviews conducted in this particular study, the chances are 95 in 100 that a survey result does not vary, plus or minus, by more than 3.1 percentage points from the result that would be obtained if interviews had been conducted with all persons in the universe represented by the sample.

 

About JA of Central Maryland

Junior Achievement of Central Maryland is dedicated to inspiring and preparing young people to succeed in a global economy. Through a dedicated volunteer network, JACMD provides hands-on programs that show more than 46,000 K-12 students each year the realities of how careers, money and business ownership work. For more information, visitwww.jamaryland.org [email.prnewswire.com].

 

About AIG

American International Group, Inc. (AIG) is a leading global insurance organization. Founded in 1919, today AIG member companies provide a wide range of property casualty insurance, life insurance, retirement products, and other financial services to customers in more than 80 countries and jurisdictions. These diverse offerings include products and services that help businesses and individuals protect their assets, manage risks and provide for retirement security. AIG common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

 

Additional information about AIG can be found at www.aig.com [email.prnewswire.com] | YouTube: www.youtube.com/aig[email.prnewswire.com] | Twitter: @AIGinsurance www.twitter.com/AIGinsurance [email.prnewswire.com] | LinkedIn:www.linkedin.com/company/aig [email.prnewswire.com]. These references with additional information about AIG have been provided as a convenience, and the information contained on such websites is not incorporated by reference into this press release.

 

AIG is the marketing name for the worldwide property-casualty, life and retirement, and general insurance operations of American International Group, Inc. For additional information, please visit our website at www.aig.com [email.prnewswire.com]. All products and services are written or provided by subsidiaries or affiliates of American International Group, Inc. Products or services may not be available in all countries, and coverage is subject to actual policy language. Non-insurance products and services may be provided by independent third parties. Certain property-casualty coverages may be provided by a surplus lines insurer. Surplus lines insurers do not generally participate in state guaranty funds, and insureds are therefore not protected by such funds.