A survey conducted for The Sallie Mae Fund by the Tomas Rivera Policy Institute at the University of Southern California found that 75% of Hispanic youth who aren't currently in college said they would have been more likely to attend if they had known more about financial aid.

The findings in the Salle Mae report are based on a telephone survey of more 1,200 Hispanic parents of children between the ages of 18 and 24, along with a sample of 1,200 Hispanic adults between the ages of 18 and 24. Both samples were drawn from seven metropolitan areas. The findings have a margin of error of 3%.

More than 66% of the surveyed parents said they hadn't receive any financial aid information while their children were in elementary or secondary school. Similarly, more than half of the Hispanic youth also reported they had not received information.

This lack of knowledge about financial aid has serious educational implications, because about 1 in 6 children in the United States is Hispanic. However, only 10% of Hispanics have a college degree (compared to 30% of the American population in general). As Harry Pachon, president of the Rivera Policy Institute, points out, Hispanics often feel "that college is too expensive and out of reach for them."

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