How to plan for rising cost of post secondary education

Added: 2026-05-09

[00:00:00]A recent national survey from education and financial planning company Embark finds many parents are not confident they're saving enough for their child's education. Nearly 60% of respondents say they either won't be able to or it will be difficult. Beverly Wilks is a financial literacy educator and a coach.

[00:00:17]She joins us with some advice on those hoping to save more. Beverly, thanks so much for being here. I want to start with this because I think this is important number for you for people. How much do you recommend people save for post-secondary education?

[00:00:30]As much as they can. Good morning. I think what's really important is when you look at the numbers like you just said, a four-year university or post-secondary school can range up to 120 to 140,000 dollars for the four years. So when the child is born, that's a perfect time to start saving so that that you have enough money for the child when he or she is ready to go to post-secondary. Now that's a big number for a lot of people at home and some who haven't started when their their kids were born. So let's talk about some benefits and some ways to approach this.

[00:01:02]Registered education savings plan, what are the benefits of that?

[00:01:06]Oh, it's a great opportunity to save a little bit of money throughout the year.

[00:01:11]So for example, you're allowed to put up to 50,000 dollars to have for your child's education. But what the best thing is, it's not just mom and dad that could start one of these funds up. It could be a friend, it could be an aunt, an uncle, anybody who really loves and wants to see this kid grow, they could start a plan.

[00:01:29]Now that's important information that it's not just the parents that can contribute, but there's also government grants that you can maximize. What's your advice for people to to know those and and how to access?

[00:01:40]Oh, this is great. So this is free money from our government. It's called the C Sorry, it's called the C L Excuse me.

[00:01:48]CESG. So many acronyms. Canadian Educational Savings Grant. And this is exactly what you see on the screen. The government provides up to 20% a year of up to 500 dollars a year when you put 2500, they give you 500 and the maximum you could get is 7200 dollars. And why this is so exciting is because that is free money that you could be getting from the government, growing throughout the years. So when the child decides, okay mom and dad, I'm ready to go to post-secondary university, college, or even a trade school, that money is there for them to help. Now as we talk about how much money is needed, we also need to know what this money can pay for. So take us inside the things that you're able to use this money for.

[00:02:33]So tuition, books, your your accommodation while you're on campus, traveling back and forth, all the things that you need to really get organized.

[00:02:44]And again, it's not just for university and colleges, it could be for an apprenticeship or even a trade school.

[00:02:49]So really any post-secondary education, it could be full-time, part-time. This is really important for the kids to know that that money is there to help them as they pursue their next level of their education. Now for many families out there, the the cost of everything is rising. There are stresses on almost every part of the budget. What's your advice for people who are looking to start an education savings plan or trying to improve what they already have?

[00:03:18]Great question.

[00:03:20]Give yourself some grace. You could start small. Doesn't need to be a huge amount of money that you're starting with. You could start with five dollars every paycheck, 10 dollars every paycheck. And the best way to start is to go to your bank and talk to your bank financial planner or advisor and open up the account. And then you could start putting in money gradually as you go.

[00:03:39]And then as you continue to add in that 2500 dollars max a year, the government will also provide you the 500 dollars.

[00:03:46]So as long as you start, the thing is start today, especially if your child is growing and and you're thinking of maybe having a second or a third child, please to start so that you could have the money waiting for them once they get to the age that they want to pursue their next level of education. Certainly planning goes a long way. Beverly, we certainly appreciate your advice and your time for us this morning.

[00:04:07]Thank you so much. Have a great day. You as well. Beverly provides free financial advice and a payment calculator, several of them for different situations on her website baconandheels.com.