• About 72 percent of parents expect their children to contribute to their higher education costs, either through working (46 percent) or saving (24 percent).
• Having their children live at home during college was the most popular (28 percent) cost-cutting strategy among parents. Starting college studies at a community college (26 percent) and pursuing college-credit courses in high school (14 percent) were among the other strategies.
• About 57 percent of parents plan to borrow money to pay for their children's college education, with 62 percent planning to use education loans and 18 percent through consumer credit vehicles such as credit cards.
The survey is based on responses from 800 parents of various incomes taken through Survey Monkey.
The College Savings Foundation is a Washington, D.C.-based non-profit organization whose membership includes investment companies, 529 plan providers and other key players in the 529 plan industry.