Relying on Mom and Dad to foot the bill of university may not be the best idea.

A TD Canada Trust Education and Finances Survey published August 16 reports that whilw 87 per cent of parents say they plan to pay all or part of the costs of their child’s post-secondary education, 26 per cent say they have yet to start saving and another 15 have no idea how they will finance it.

“With the provincial government having raised the amount that a student is able to receive with OSAP, but also raising the minimum salary needed to receive the student loans, neither students nor parents have planned for the financing of post-secondary educations,” said Barbara Timmins of TD Bank Financial Group. “[There has been] an increase in fees without parents having the ability to be able to plan for the rise in costs. Furthermore, the federal governments saving plan is relatively new.”

Of the 1001 students surveyed, half the respondents are working this summer to help pay for school and 66 per cent will be unable to earn enough money to cover expenses. 44 per cent of students are relying on student loans to aid their payments whereas another 27 per cent are using RESPs. The study was conducted in July.

Despite working all summer to finance his studies, fourth-year student Arun Srinivasan still finds university tuition sometimes overwhelming.

“[…] sometimes paying for tuition along with other costs can still be challenging,” says Srinivasan, suggesting early in high school as a time to start looking at university financing options.

A 2009 TD study revealed that a four-year undergraduate degree costs approximately $80,000 for students living away from home. Financing post-secondary education comes at a time when degrees or training beyond the high-school level is valued more than ever within the job market.

“With a very large portion of University of Toronto students getting OSAP loans, nearly 40 per cent, they often face very severe debts at the end of their education,” said Trinity College Registrar Bruce Bowden. “While students pay for their education through a combination of their own savings and work, scholarships and bursaries, even that may not be enough to completely finance a post-secondary education.”