Nearly half of students can’t cover basics such as food and housing: TD poll

In a new survey from TD Bank, nearly half of Canadian students say they are unable to adequately cover basic needs such as food and housing.

The online poll found 45 per cent of those surveyed say the cannot cover their basic needs.

The report also says that 65 per cent of students define themselves as financially unstable.

In a new survey from TD Bank, nearly half of Canadian students say they are unable to adequately cover basic needs such as food and housing. Students wait at a crosswalk at the Western University campus in London, Ont., Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nicole Osborne

Of the students surveyed, 64 per cent say they have some form of a budget to track their expenses, but only 41 per cent say they are able to follow it on a regular basis.

The report also found that 94 per cent of parents of post-secondary students say they provide some level of financial support to their child.

Fifty-eight per cent said they provide a significant amount of support.

The online survey was done between July 26 to Aug. 4 and included 514 post-secondary students and 515 parents of children enrolled in post-secondary school.

The poll cannot be assigned a margin of error because online polls are not considered truly random samples.