College Hopes & Worries Survey

The Princeton Review 2006 "College Hopes & Worries Survey" Report

The Princeton Review has conducted this survey of high school students
applying to colleges and parents of college applicants since 2002. The
2006 survey appeared in The Princeton Review book, Best 361 Colleges:
2006 Edn. (published August 2005) in a paper version readers could mail
or fax to the company. It also ran on www.PrincetonReview.com where
users could complete the survey online from January through February
2006.

Findings below are based on responses from 4,902 people nationwide:
3,890 were high school students applying to colleges and 1,012 were
parents of college applicants. The company awarded a $500 college
scholarship to one survey participant chosen at random.

Survey Questions / Findings

This first question was fill-in-the-blank.
1) What would be your "dream" college? What college would you most like
to attend (or see your child attend) if chance of being accepted or
cost were not an issue?"

The 10 colleges students most named were: 1-New York Univ., 2-Harvard
Univ., 3-Princeton Univ., 4-Stanford Univ., 5-Yale Univ., 6-Brown
Univ., 7-Columbia Univ., 8-Duke Univ., 9-Cornell Univ., and 10-Univ. of
California Los Angeles

The 10 colleges parents most named were: 1-Princeton Univ., 2-Stanford
Univ., 3-Harvard Univ., 4-Univ. of Notre Dame, 5-Duke Univ., 6-Yale
Univ., 7-Boston College, 8-Brown Univ., 9-Cornell Univ.,
10-Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

The following questions were all multiple-choice. Respondents could
only choose one answer. The percent of respondents overall (students
and parents combined) choosing an answer is shown. If there was a
notable difference in students' and parents' answer choices, findings
are indicated as % Overall, % Students, % Parents.

2) Which of the following would describe your "safety" school? What
type of college are you (or your child) applying to that you think you
(or your child) will be most likely to get into, and afford?

59% State or public college in my state
15% State or public college in another state
Combined: 74% state or public college
11% Private college in my state
15% Private college in another state
Combined: 26% private college

3) How would you gauge your stress level about the college application
process?

17% Very High
42% High
Combined: 59% said Very High or High
36% Average
04% Low
01% Very Low
Combined: 05% said Very Low or Low

4) What has been, or do you think will be the toughest part of your
(your child's) college application experience?

% Overall (% Students, % Parents)
24% Deciding which colleges to apply to (22% Students, 30% Parents)
33% Taking standardized tests such as SAT, ACT, APs or SAT IIs (37%
Students, 27% Parents)
18% Writing college essays (19% Students, 13% Parents)
25% Deciding which college to attend (25% Students, 26% Parents)

5) What's your biggest concern about applying to or attending college?

% Overall (% Students, % Parents)
34% Won't get into first-choice college (36% Students, 25% Parents)
29% Will get in, but won't be able to afford it (29% Students, 29%
Parents)
22% Will get in, but will take on major loan debt to attend (20%
Students, 30% Parents)
15% Will attend a college I (or my child) may later regret (15%
Students, 16% Parents)

6) When it comes to choosing the actual college you (or your child)
will attend, which of the following do you think it is most likely to
be?

09% College with best academic reputation
11% College that will be the most affordable
25% College with best program for my (my child's) career interests
55% College that will be the best overall fit

7) What do you estimate your (or your child's) college degree will
cost, including four years of tuition, room & board, fees, books and
other miscellaneous costs?

% Overall (% Students, % Parents)
47% More than $75,000 (43% Students, 62% Parents)
24% $50,000 to 75,000 (24% Students, 21% Parents)
Combined: 71% said More than $50,000 (67% Students, 83%
Parents)
22% $25,000 to $50,000 (25% Students, 13% Parents)
07% Up to $25,000 (08% Students, 04% Parents)
Combined: 29% said Less than $50,000 (33% Students, 17%
Parents)

What do you (your child) most want to get out of attending college?

16% A great overall education
28% A great education in a specific field or career area
07% A better paying job upon graduation
49% A well-rounded, maturing life experience (academically, socially,
etc.)

9) Ideally, how far from home would you like the college you (your
child) attend(s) to be?

% Overall (% Students, % Parents)
20% 0-100 miles (20% Students, 22% Parents)
45% 100-500 miles (42% Students, 59% Parents)
20% 500-1,000 miles (22% Students, 12% Parents)
15% 1,000 miles or more (16% Students, 7% Parents)

10) What part of college life may be most difficult or challenging for
you / your child?

% Overall (% Students, % Parents)
28% Academics: keeping up with coursework (29% Students, 26% Parents)
17% Dorm life: living with a roommate (15% Students, 22% Parents)
41% Money matters: budgeting, spending wisely, avoiding debt (45%
Students, 27% Parents)
14% Social scene: dealing with drinking, drugs and dating issues (11%
Students, 25% Parents)

11) How often do you expect to hear from your parent(s) (your child) by
phone or e-mail during freshman year?

25% Daily
67% Weekly
06% Monthly
0.6% Once a semester
1.4% Only if it's an emergency

# # #


Media /Press Contacts:
Jeanne Krier, Princeton Review Books, (212) 539-1350
Harriet Brand, The Princeton Review, (212) 874-8282 ext. 1091,
harrietb DeleteThis @review.com
Robin Raskin, The Princeton Review, (212) 874-8282 ext. 1647,
robinr DeleteThis @review.com