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With college tuition rising significantly over the past three decades (Snyder, Dillow, and Hoffman 2009), students and parents have become increasingly concerned about college affordability, financial aid, and financial preparations for postsecondary education. This set of Issue Tables, one of a series examining students' preparation for college, draws upon data from the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 (ELS:02) to address these concerns. Tables 1 and 2 present data on how high school seniors and their parents rated the importance of low college expenses and the availability of financial aid in choosing a college, distinguishing between students who planned to attend 2-year or 4-year postsecondary institutions. Tables 3 and 4 examine the various financial preparations that parents had made as of 2002 for their children's future education. Table 3 looks at parents of students who planned to attend 4-year postsecondary institutions after high school, and table 4 focuses on parents of students who planned to attend 2-year institutions. Table 5 examines whether high school seniors in 2004 who had applied to college by 2006 had applied for financial aid and, if not, their reasons for not applying. Estimates in all tables are shown for all specified students in the high school senior class of 2004 and by a wide range of student, family, and high school characteristics. A glossary and technical notes are included.

Preparing to attend a postsecondary institution often involves many steps. In addition to academic preparation, high school students who plan to pursue postsecondary education must apply for admission to a college. For those who want to attend a 4-year institution, most also need to take a college entrance examination and obtain financial aid information. This set of Issue Tables, one of a series examining students' preparation for college, draws on data from the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 (ELS:02) to examine the extent to which the senior class of 2003-04 took or planned to take these steps toward postsecondary enrollment. The following provides a summary of this set of Issue Tables. Table 1 shows the percentage of seniors who took or planned to take the College Board Preliminary Scholastic Assessment Test (PSAT), or college entrance examinations such as the College Board Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) and American College Test (ACT). Tables 2 and 3 explore high school seniors' preparation in more detail. Tables 4 and 5 examine high school seniors' college application activities. Table 6 restricts the sample to 2004 high school seniors who applied to college as of 2006 and examines the selectivity of the postsecondary institutions to which they applied. Estimates in all tables are shown for all specified students in the high school senior class of 2004 and by a wide range of student, family, and high school characteristics. A glossary is included. (Contains 6 tables and 2 footnotes.)

Increasing numbers of students expect to attend college after high school (U.S. Department of Education 2006). This set of Issue Tables, the second in a series examining students' preparation for college, draws on data from the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 (ELS:02) to highlight postsecondary expectations and plans among the senior class of 2003-04. The following provides a summary of this set of Issue Tables: Tables 1 and 2 examine the highest level of education that students expected to attain and that parents expected students to attain. Tables 3 to 5 examine students' postsecondary plans. Table 6 looks at the opinions of students' parents, school staff, and friends about going to college after high school; table 7 shows how frequently students discussed going to college with their parents; and table 8 presents the number of students' friends planning to attend a 2- or 4-year college after high school. Estimates in all tables are shown for all students and by a wide range of student, family, and high school characteristics. A glossary is included. (Contains 8 tables and 2 footnotes.)