Generation Z On-Line Survey

TO7 GEN Z RESEARCH ONLINE SURVEY Final 03/26/15

^{PROGRAMMER: AIM FOR 400 COMPLETES, WITH QUOTA OF 150 COMPLETES FOR PARENTS OF CHILDREN AGED 13-15, 125 COMPLETES FOR PARENTS OF CHILDREN AGED 16-18, AND 125 COMPLETES FOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS AGED 16-18.}

^{Intro - Introduction}

Market Connections is conducting research on behalf of the U.S. Department of Education’s office of Federal Student Aid (FSA). FSA would like your input and feedback on information related to financial aid for college or career school. This survey is voluntary and should take only about 12 minutes to complete. Your responses will remain anonymous and will be reported only in summary form. Thank you in advance for your time. Your input is very important. Click the "Next" button below to begin the survey.

^{Screener1_Received Student Loans}

S1. Which of the following best describes your circumstances?

• Parent or Guardian of a child aged 13-15, whom you anticipate upon high school graduation to enroll in a college, university, or career school as a first-year student [CLASSIFY AS PARENT OF 13-15 YEAR-OLD. GO TO S2.]

• Parent or Guardian of a child aged 16-18, whom you anticipate upon high school graduation to enroll in a

college, university, or career school as a first-year student [CLASSIFY AS PARENT OF 16-18 YEAR-OLD. GO TO S2.]

• Parent or Guardian of children aged 13-15 and 16-18, whom you anticipate upon high school graduation to enroll in a college, university, or career school as a first-year student [ASK S1A.]

• High School Student: Currently enrolled in high school, and planning within one year of high school graduation to enroll in a college, university, or career school, either part time or full time [CLASSIFY AS HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT. GO TO S3.]

• Other (please specify): ____________________ [THANK & TERMINATE]

STOP	Screened – Termination Screener Thank You Thank you for your willingness to participate in this survey. We have met our quota for respondents in your category and do not need any additional information.

ASK S1A ONLY IF THE PARENT SELECTS BOTH 13-15 AND 16-18 AT S1. OTHERS SKIP TO S2.

S1A. Understanding that you have children aged 13-15 and 16-18, for the purposes of completing this survey, please classify yourself as either the parent of a 13-15 year-old, or the parent of 16-18 year-old, and then answer the survey questions with only that child in mind. For the purposes of this survey, you are…

• The parent of 13-15 year-old (1) [CLASSIFY AS PARENT OF 13-15 YEAR-OLD. GO TO S2.]

• The parent of 16-18 year-old (2) [CLASSIFY AS PARENT OF 16-18 YEAR-OLD. GO TO S2.]

^{Screener2_Financial Decisions}

S2. Are you primarily or jointly responsible for making the financial decisions in your household?

• Yes (1)

• No (2) [THANK AND TERMINATE]

STOP	Screened –Making Financial Decisions in Household Screener Thank You Thank you for your willingness to participate in this evaluation. We have met our quota for respondents in your category and do not need any additional information.

^{Screener3_Interest in Financial Aid/Loan Information}

S3. To what extent are you interested in obtaining information or advice on financial aid for college? Are you…

• Very interested (1)

• Somewhat interested (2)

• Not very interested (3) [THANK AND TERMINATE]

• Not at all interested (4) [THANK AND TERMINATE]

STOP	Screened – Interest in Financial Aid information Screener Thank You Thank you for your willingness to participate in this evaluation.We have met our quota for respondents in your category and do not need any additional information.

Defining Generation Z

1. When it comes to naming different generations, there are terms like “Baby Boomers” and other, more recent, labels to describe younger generations. What name or label best describes [HS STUDENT: your / PARENT: your child’s] generation?

[ROTATE]

• Generation X (1)

• Generation Y (2)

• Generation Z (3)

• Millennial (4)

• Other (please specify________) (97)

• Unsure (98)

2. Do you feel like [HS STUDENT: you / PARENT: your child] will have more educational opportunities in life compared to earlier generations, less educational opportunities, or will [HS STUDENT: your / PARENT: their] prospects be about the same?

• More educational opportunities (1)

• Less educational opportunities (2)

• Educational prospects will remain about the same (3)

3. What makes you say that? (OPEN END____________)

4. Do you feel like [HS STUDENT: you / PARENT: your child] will have more career opportunities in life compared to earlier generations, fewer career opportunities, or will [HS STUDENT: your / PARENT: their] prospects remain about the same?

• More career opportunities (1)

• Fewer career opportunities (2)

• Career prospects will remain about the same (3)

5. What makes you say that? (OPEN END____________)

Generation Z Digital Habits

6. What electronic devices do you use on a daily basis? (Select all that apply)

[ROTATE]

• Smartphone (1)

• Regular wireless cell phone (2)

• Tablet/iPad (3)

• Game console (e.g., Xbox, Playstation) (4)

• Laptop (5)

• Desktop/PC (6)

• Other (please specify _______) (97)

[IF HS STUDENT, SKIP TO Q8]

7. What electronic devices does your child use on a daily basis? (Select all that apply)

[ROTATE]

• Smartphone (1)

• Regular wireless cell phone (2)

• Tablet/iPad (3)

• Game console (e.g., Xbox, Playstation) (4)

• Laptop (5)

• Desktop/PC (6)

• Other (please specify _______) (97)

8. What electronic device(s) [HS STUDENT: do you / PARENT: does your child] prefer to use when communicating with friends? (Select up to top 2)

[ROTATE]

• Smartphone (1)

• Regular wireless cell phone (2)

• Tablet/iPad (3)

• Game console (e.g., Xbox, Playstation) (4)

• Laptop (5)

• Desktop/PC (6)

• Other (please specify _______) (97)

9. What electronic device(s) [HS STUDENT: do you / PARENT: does your child] prefer to use when researching a topic in depth, such as for a school assignment? (Select up to top 2)

[ROTATE]

• Smartphone (1)

• Regular wireless cell phone (2)

• Tablet/iPad (3)

• Game console (e.g., Xbox, Playstation) (4)

• Laptop (5)

• Desktop/PC (6)

• Other (please specify _______) (97)

9. What electronic device(s) [HS STUDENT: do you / PARENT: does your child] prefer to use when looking for information in general? (Select up to top 2)

[ROTATE]

• Smartphone (1)

• Regular wireless cell phone (2)

• Tablet/iPad (3)

• Game console (e.g., Xbox, Playstation) (4)

• Laptop (5)

• Desktop/PC (6)

• Other (please specify _______) (97)

9. Which statement best describes [HS STUDENT: your / PARENT: your child’s] electronic device usage?

• Heavily dependent (1)

• Moderately dependent (2)

• Not very dependent (3)

9. Which statement best describes your feelings about [HS STUDENT: your / PARENT: your child’s] electronic device usage?

• It concerns me that [HS STUDENT: I / PARENT: they] use [HS STUDENT: my / PARENT: their] devices so much (1)

• It concerns me that [HS STUDENT: I / PARENT: they] use [HS STUDENT: my / PARENT: their] devices so little (2)

• I am not concerned about [HS STUDENT: my / PARENT: their] device use (3)

9. Outside of their use for school work, approximately how many hours per day do you estimate [HS STUDENT: you use your / PARENT: your child uses his/her] electronic devices?

• Less than one hour (1)

• 1-3 hours (2)

• 4-5 hours (3)

• 6-10 hours (4)

• 11-15 hours (5)

• 16+ hours (6)

• Always connected, but actual usage may vary (7)

• Don’t know

College Funding Knowledge, Concerns

9. How knowledgeable do you feel you are on the subject of college funding and financial aid?

• Very knowledgeable (1)

• Somewhat knowledgeable (2)

• Not very knowledgeable (3)

• Not at all knowledgeable (4)

9. At what age do you feel it is appropriate to [HS STUDENTS: become involved / PARENT: begin to involve your child] in general discussions about preparing for college?

• Age 13 (1)

• Age 14 (2)

• Age 15 (3)

• Age 16 (4)

• Age 17 (5)

• Age 18 (6)

• Older than Age 18 (7)

• Do not intend ever [HS STUDENT: to become involved / PARENTS to involve my child] in those discussions, at any age (8)

9. At what age do you feel it is appropriate to [HS STUDENTS: become involved / PARENT: begin to involve your child] in serious discussions about paying for college?

• Age 13 (1)

• Age 14 (2)

• Age 15 (3)

• Age 16 (4)

• Age 17 (5)

• Age 18 (6)

• Older than Age 18 (7)

• Do not intend ever [HS STUDENT: to become involved / PARENTS to involve my child] in those discussions, at any age (8)

[ASK Q17-18 TO PARENTS ONLY. HS STUDENTS SKIP TO Q19.]

9. As a parent, what challenges do you face with regard to college funding and financial aid? (Select all that apply)

[ROTATE]

• Determining how much my child’s college education will cost (1)

• Finding credible information on college funding and financial aid (2)

• Finding easy to read/understand information on college funding and financial aid (3)

• How to fill out financial aid application forms, such as the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) (4)

• Applying for scholarships and grants (5)

• Figuring out how much I can afford to contribute to my child’s education (6)

• Determining if my child qualifies for financial aid (7)

• Determining how much financial aid my child might be able to get (8)

• Depending on the type of loan, the possibility that I will be responsible for paying back any student loans if my child is unable to (9)

• The possibility of encouraging my child to pursue a “marketable” degree (10)

• Choosing a school based on cost (11)

• Other (please specify____) (97)

9. Thinking of your financial situation overall, if you had to choose between saving for your child’s college education and saving for your own retirement, which one would be your priority? (ROTATE)

• Saving for my child’s college education (1)

• Saving for my retirement (2)

• Unsure (98)

^{Searching for and Receiving Federal Student Aid/Loan Information}

9. Have you ever searched for information about how to pay for college or career school, whether for yourself or for others? (For example, you may have searched for information about student loans or about federal student aid in general.)

• Yes (1) [GO TO Q20]

• No (2) [SKIP TO Q21]

• Unsure (98) [SKIP TO Q21]

9. Where have you ever looked for information about college funding or financial aid? (Select all that apply)

[ROTATE]

• Internet search engine (e.g., Google) (1)

• Website (2)

• Social media (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, YouTube) (3)

• Face-to-face meeting with college advisors or high school counselors (4)

• Workshop or information session held by school/college (5)

• Public library (6)

• Other (please specify) ____________________________________________________________(97)

[SKIP Q21 IF ONLY ONE ITEM MENTIONED AT Q20]

9. Which of these places for information are you most likely to pay attention to? (Select up to two)

[PROGRAMMER: PIPE IN RESPONSES FROM Q20.]

9. What information formats have you ever used for information about college funding or financial aid? (Select all that apply)

[ROTATE]

• Video (1)

• Infographic (e.g., a visual image such as a chart or diagram used to represent information or data) (2)

• Booklet/brochure (3)

• Other (please specify) ____________________________________________________________(97)

[SKIP Q23 IF ONLY ONE ITEM MENTIONED AT Q22]

9. Which of these information formats are you most likely to pay attention to? (Select up to two)

[PROGRAMMER: PIPE IN RESPONSES FROM Q22.]

9. By what means would you prefer to receive information about college funding or financial aid? (Select all that apply)

[ROTATE]

• Internet search engine (e.g., Google) (1)

• Website (2)

• Social media (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, YouTube) (3)

• Video (4)

• Infographic (e.g., a visual image such as a chart or diagram used to represent information or data) (5)

• Face-to-face meeting with college advisors or high school counselors (6)

• Workshop or information session held by school/college (7)

• Webinar (8)

• Booklet/brochure (9)

• Email message (with or without links) (10)

• Regular mail (11)

• App (12)

• Alert/notification (13)

• Text message (14)

• Other (please specify): ____________________________________________________________(97)

9. Please indicate your usage of the following social networks.

[ROTATE]	1 – Never	2 – Monthly	3- Weekly	4 – Daily	5 – More than once a day	6 - Hourly
Facebook
Google+
GroupMe
Instagram
Kik
Reddit
Snapchat
Tumblr
Twitter
Vine
Other (specify)_____

9. If the Department of Education’s office of Federal Student Aid had its own social media page (e.g., on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram) devoted to providing financial aid information and tips on paying for college, to what degree would you be likely to post questions or otherwise engage in discussions on this topic?

• Very likely to post questions/discuss (1)

• Somewhat likely to post questions/discuss (2)

• Somewhat unlikely to post questions/discuss (3)

• Not at all likely to post questions/discuss (4)

Demographics and Classifications

The last few questions are for classification purposes only. These questions are not required. This information will be used for research purposes only and reported anonymously.

9. What is your gender? [NOT REQUIRED]

• Male

• Female

9. Which of the following categories best describes your age? [NOT REQUIRED]

[DROP DOWN LIST]

• Under 16

• 16

• 17

• 18

• 19

• 20

• 21

• 22-24

• 25-34

• 35-44

• 45-54

• 55-64

• 65 or older

9. What category best describes the area in which you live? [NOT REQUIRED]

• Urban

• Suburban

• Rural

9. What is the highest level of education you have attained? [NOT REQUIRED]

• Some high school

• High school diploma

• Some college

• Some trade school

• Trade/professional school or proprietary school diploma/certificate

• Associate degree (2-year)

• Bachelor’s degree (4-year)

• Master’s degree

• PhD or postdoctoral degree

• None of these

9. Which of the following categories best describes your annual household income before taxes? [NOT REQUIRED]

• Under $20,000

• $20,000 to $39,999

• $40,000 to $59,999

• $60,000 to $79,999

• $80,000 to $99,999

• $100,000 to $149,999

• $150,000 to $199,999

• $200,000 and over

• Prefer not to say/Unsure

9. Which of the following describes your ethnicity? [NOT REQUIRED]

• Hispanic or Latino

• Not Hispanic or Latino

9. Which of the following describes your race? [NOT REQUIRED]

(Select all that apply)

• American Indian or Alaska Native

• Asian

• Black or African American

• Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander

• White

9. ^{What state do you live in?}

[DROPDOWN MENU] [NOT REQUIRED]

STOP

Complete – Thank you Thank you for your participation! FSA values your input. Please click the button below to submit your responses. According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless such collection displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB control number for this information collection is 1845-0045. Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 12 minutes per response, including time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. The obligation to respond to this collection is voluntary. If you have comments or concerns regarding the status of your individual submission of this survey, please contact Federal Student Aid/Customer Experience Office/Customer Analytics Group at 830 First Street, NE Washington, DC 20202 or [email protected] directly. [Note: Please do not return the completed survey to this address.]

[REDIRECT TO http://studentaid.ed.gov/home]

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