Total College Student Discretionary Spending Up 40% This Year

Total college market spending will grow to $405 billion this year, up 5% from $385 billion last year, details a study released in September by re:fuel. That growth will be fueled by a 40% year-over-year jump in discretionary spending, from $86 billion last year to $120 billion this year. Although some of that is based on increased enrollment of about 600,000 students, the average annual discretionary spend per student has increased by almost 37%, from $4,069 in 2011 to $5,559 this year. (more…)