Students seeking higher education to get a good job: Survey

60 per cent planning to attend university to prepare for specific career

For tomorrow's college and university students, the number one reason for pursuing higher education is to get a good job.

Almost 60 per cent of Ontario high school students planning to attend university and 70 per cent planning to attend college say their top reason is "to prepare for a specific job or career," found the survey of 1,180 Ontario students by the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario (HEQCO).

"To get a good job" is the top rationale for 58 per cent of university-bound and 75 per cent of college-bound students.

Less than 40 per cent of university-bound and 13 per cent of college-bound students cite "increasing my knowledge" as their top rationale for pursuing higher education.

In addition to their focus on jobs, more than 85 per cent of high school students surveyed are concerned or very concerned about debt: having sufficient funds to pay for their education and their ability to repay post-secondary debt.

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