Study Reveals Parents Could Have Saved $20,000 More for College

Fidelity Investments' launched their 10thï ¿ ½Annualï ¿ ½College Savings Indicator Study. The study finds that looking back, more than half of parents admit they could have saved more for college each month. Just how much more? You may be surprised - Overall, this year's study finds many promising strides in college savings since the first survey in 2007.ï ¿ ½ Highlights from the 10thï ¿ ½Annual College Savings Indicator Study include: Positive progress report:ï ¿ ½The number of parents saving for college is at an all-time high.ï ¿ ½Nearly three-in-four parents have started savingï ¿ ½andï ¿ ½41 percent are investing in 529 plans. Citing their own experiences managing student loan debt after graduation, parents plan to spare their kids by footing even more of the bill. ...But there's still room to earn a better grade:ï ¿ ½Although we've seen an increase in saving, on average, parents are still only on track to reachï ¿ ½less than a third of their college funding goal (29%)ï ¿ ½by the time their child heads to campus. A little extra credit that could go a long way:ï ¿ ½ We asked parents with kids in 10thï ¿ ½grade and higher if, looking back, they could have saved more each month ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½a full 50 percent said they could have saved at least $50 or more a month.ï ¿ ½Did you know those extra $50 have the potential to accumulate to nearly $20,000 over 18 years? For more information, check out ourï ¿ ½infographic below andï ¿ ½executive summary , which further dig into this year's findings. RELATED: The magic number for college savings Fidelity Investments' launched their 10thï ¿ ½Annualï ¿ ½College Savings Indicator Study. The study finds that looking back, more than half of parents admit they could have saved more for college each month. Just how much more? You may be surprised - Overall, this year's study finds many promising strides in college savings since the first survey in 2007.ï ¿ ½ Highlights from the 10thï ¿ ½Annual College Savings Indicator Study include: Positive progress report:ï ¿ ½The number of parents saving for college is at an all-time high.ï ¿ ½Nearly three-in-four parents have started savingï ¿ ½andï ¿ ½41 percent are investing in 529 plans. Citing their own experiences managing student loan debt after graduation, parents plan to spare their kids by footing even more of the bill. ...But there's still room to earn a better grade:ï ¿ ½Although we've seen an increase in saving, on average, parents are still only on track to reachï ¿ ½less than a third of their college funding goal (29%)ï ¿ ½by the time their child heads to campus. A little extra credit that could go a long way:ï ¿ ½ We asked parents with kids in 10thï ¿ ½grade and higher if, looking back, they could have saved more each month ï ¿ ½Ã¯ ¿ ½a full 50 percent said they could have saved at least $50 or more a month.ï ¿ ½Did you know those extra $50 have the potential to accumulate to nearly $20,000 over 18 years? For more information, check out ourï ¿ ½infographic below andï ¿ ½executive summary , which further dig into this year's findings. RELATED: The magic number for college savings