The top concern keeping parents and students up at night as they apply for college? That would be the amount of debt they are about to take on, according to The Princeton Review's 2017 College Hopes & Worries survey.

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A majority of students and parents said their biggest worry was the "level of debt I/my child will take on to pay for the degree." That's in line with last year but a sharp contrast to a decade ago, when the most commonly cited answer was "won't get in to first-choice college." It's no wonder. Tuition has historically risen about 3 to 5 percent a year, according to the College Board, and during the recession, declining public funds caused tuition to skyrocket. At private four-year schools, average tuition and fees rose 54 percent in the last 10 years. Tuition plus fees at four-year public schools, which were harder hit, jumped 71 percent over the time period.

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A whopping 98 percent of college applicants and their parents said financial aid would be necessary to pay for college and 65 percent said it was "extremely necessary," according to the Review.

Tuition keeps rising Academic Year Private Nonprofit Four-Year One-Year % Change Public Four-Year One-Year % Change Public Two-Year One-Year % Change 05-06 $20,980 4.7% $5,492 7.1% $2,182 5.0% 06-07 $22,308 6.3% $5,804 5.7% $2,266 3.8% 07-08 $23,420 5.0% $6,191 6.7% $2,294 1.2% 08-09 $24,818 6.0% $6,599 6.6% $2,382 3.8% 09-10 $25,739 3.7% $7,073 7.2% $2,569 7.9% 10-11 $26,766 4.0% $7,629 7.9% $2,742 6.7% 11-12 $27,883 4.2% $8,276 8.5% $2,973 8.4% 12-13 $28,989 4.0% $8,646 4.5% $3,154 6.1% 13-14 $30,131 3.9% $8,885 2.8% $3,241 2.8% 14-15 $31,283 3.8% $9,145 2.9% $3,336 2.9% 15-16 $32,405 3.6% $9,410 2.9% $3,435 3.0%