Family Structure History and Young Adults' Receipt of Financial Assistance for College

Julia S. Goldberg, University of Wisconsin-Madison

As youth take longer to transition to adulthood, families are being called on to support their children well past adolescence. High rates of single parenthood and family disruption may be interfering with families’ ability to provide this support. In the present study, I examine the association between young adults’ family structure history and their receipt of a particularly important resource from their family--financial assistance for college. Using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 cohort (N = 3,081), I describe how young adults’ family structure history relates to their receipt of college assistance from their family, as well as which family members--including biological parents, stepparents, grandparents, and other relatives--provide this support. This study makes an important contribution to our understanding of how the structure and stability of the family of origin continue to shape children’s life chances even as they enter adulthood.