Is "Put in $2,500 and Call it a Day" Really an Education Funding Plan?

When I was preparing to go to university, my divorced parents each gave me $5,000. That was their contribution to my education. The rest was up to me.

I remember starting part-time work in high school at $7 an hour, slowly building my savings one shift at a time. It wasn’t glamorous. It often meant late nights, missing out on social time with friends, and learning how long it really takes to save for something as big as an education. But those years shaped me. I learned how to stretch a dollar, how to budget with intention, and how to say no to overspending because I knew every dollar had a purpose.

That experience made me resilient — but it also taught me that education planning is about so much more than we are taught by financial institutions.

Different Perspectives, Different Expectations

Every family approaches education differently. One spouse may believe parents should cover every expense, while the other might feel strongly that children should contribute, work, or borrow. These beliefs don’t come from nowhere; they’re shaped by how we were raised and what we experienced ourselves.

When couples don’t talk about these assumptions, they often find themselves misaligned without even realizing it. One imagines paying for everything, the other plans for their kids to shoulder part of the cost. And then when the time comes, the gap between expectations can create conflict — or leave children caught in the middle.

Beyond the Default Contribution

Too often, education planning gets reduced to “just put in the RESP max and call it a day.” While maximizing grants is smart, it’s not the same thing as having a plan.

A real plan starts with values. What do you believe is your responsibility as a parent? How much do you want your child to contribute? What lessons about money, work, and independence do you want them to carry forward into adulthood?

When those values are clear, then we can bring the numbers into focus.

Facing the Numbers

Education is expensive, and it’s only getting more so. In Canada, average tuition today sits around $7,076 a year, with costs in some provinces much higher. Tuition alone has been rising faster than general inflation — about 3.5% last year, and an average of 2.7% a year since 2006.

If those trends continue, the average tuition could be more than $11,000 by 2042. And that’s just tuition. It doesn’t include housing, food, travel, books, or the other realities of student life.

This is why a “set-and-forget” contribution strategy isn’t enough. Without intentional planning, families risk saving far less than what they’ll actually need.

Creating a Family Strategy

Education funding doesn’t have to mean covering everything. Some families want to provide full support, others aim to cover tuition only, and many prefer a shared model where parents contribute a portion and children add to it through work, scholarships, or loans.

There’s no right or wrong answer. What matters is that spouses talk about it openly, agree on their philosophy, and then build a plan that reflects those choices.

The Planner’s Role

This is where a planner can make a real difference. Not by focusing only on RESP rules or grant eligibility, but by guiding families through the bigger conversations — surfacing unspoken beliefs, modeling realistic cost projections, and showing how education savings fit into the broader financial picture.

It’s not about contributions alone. It’s about creating a plan that feels financially sustainable and emotionally aligned.

Final Thoughts

My own path — $5,000 a year from my parents and the expectation that I’d work and save the rest — gave me valuable life lessons. It made me careful with money, resourceful, and disciplined. But it also showed me how important it is for parents to be intentional in their planning.

Every family’s story is different. What matters most is that couples have the conversation, align their values, and create a strategy that reflects both their hearts and their numbers. Because when it comes to education funding, “$2,500 and call it a day” isn’t really a plan. It’s just the beginning of a much bigger conversation.