Tons of parents are delusional about saving for their kid's college — and it's going to catch up with them

University of San Diego dining hall

(Facebook/USDDining) A dining hall at the University of California, San Diego.

In its latest report, How America Saves for College 2015, student lender Sallie Mae and market research company Ipsos surveyed nearly 2,000 American parents with at least one child under the age of 18.

The report found that 57% of respondents were planning, saving, or both planning and saving to help put their kids through college.

It also uncovered an interesting thought pattern, shown in the graphic below. Parents who are saving for college expect that between their income and savings, their contribution will cover about 41% of their child's college costs, and parents who aren't saving expect that they'll be responsible for about 29%.

sallie mae cost sources

(Sallie Mae)

Parents who aren't saving expect they'll have to cover less of the total price, but they still expect to cover some. And where, exactly, are parents who aren't saving going to find the money to pay for that 29%? Not through loans, which are a separate category in the survey, and certainly not through the savings they aren't accumulating.

For students enrolling in a four-year college in 2015, average tuition is about $81,000 for public schools and nearly $179,000 for private. By the time the class of 2037 enters its freshman year, those numbers are projected to rise to about $133,000 and nearly $262,000, respectively.

Even if we take the lowest sticker price in that group, $81,000 for a four-year public school, 29% is nearly $23,500. If you divide that by 18 years of saving, it ends up being a more-manageable $1,300 a year, or $108 a month (assuming you're using a savings vehicle that doesn't earn interest, which is surprisingly common among college savers).

And if you aren't planning ahead or saving, where are you supposed to find $23,500?

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