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Finding Four : Paying for College Is Difficult but Doable

College is perceived as expensive, and 66% of Illinois residents strongly or somewhat disagree that families are doing a good job of saving for college. Illinois residents are divided on the question of whether there are many qualified people who are currently unable to go to college. Forty-nine percent feel that the vast majority of those who are qualified have an opportunity to go to college, as compared to 43% who say that there are many people who are qualified to go to college but do not have an opportunity to do so.

But the vast majority of Illinois residents are convinced that where there is a will, there is a way. Eighty-eight percent either strongly (60%) or somewhat (28%) agree that people who really want to go to college can find a way to pay for it even if they have to go to school and work at the same time.

Illinois residents also support a broad range of financial aid proposals, with 74% thinking that the government should offer more tax breaks for students, 74% favoring more funds for work-study, and 61% favoring more money for loans. Direct grants to students were somewhat less popular; only 45% favored more money for grants.

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