The TD Canada Trust Education and Finances Survey, which polled 1,000 students in July, found that Canadians are not taking full advantage of RESPs. Just 27% of students said they’re relying on RESPs to finance their education, while 44% plan to rely on student loans or lines of credit.

This indicates “a significant lost opportunity,” accoding to Carrie Russell, senior vice president at TD Canada Trust.

“RESPs are an unbeatable way to finance post-secondary education — they benefit from the Canada Education Savings Grant, they allow for tax-sheltered growth and they can be used for tuition at universities, colleges, trade and technical schools,” Russell says.

The cost of an undergraduate degree is estimated at $80,000 for students living away from home, and parents appear to be helping their children with these costs, but only in part. Sixty per cent of respondents said their parents pay for a quarter or less of their expenses, and only 10% said that their parents pay for 75% or more.

Students are struggling to pay the remainder. Seventy per cent of students work during the summer for cash, 36% have part-time jobs during the year, 26% rely on student loans and 18% borrow money from their parents.

Still, one-in-five students say they continually feel like they do not have enough money, and 41% of students are spending more money than they save.

As a result, debt levels are on the rise. Of the survey respondents, 69% projected that they will graduate with some debt, and 17% expect their debt to be in excess of $25,000.

But most students expect their financial struggles to pay off in the long run. Nearly 40% of those surveyed believe that they will be rich some day. The definition of rich varies, with three-in-ten defining “rich” as having more than $1 million in the bank, and 60% saying that they will be rich by having less than $1 million.

IE