Financial: Boomers in the Classroom - It’s a Booming Trend

Are you planning to revisit the best times of your life? In this era of longer, healthier and more active retirements, that's exactly what many retirees are doing. For some, that means having all the time in the world for trips to fun places that could only be briefly sampled under the pressure of family and financial commitments in the younger years. For others, it means transforming a youthful hobby into a full-time occupation. And for an ever-growing number of baby boomers, it means a return to the classroom.

There's no doubt that baby boomers are radically rewriting the definition of retirement – and, along the way, transforming the face of education. Over the past few years, there has been a huge increase in lifelong and adult learning programs – everything from “Learning in Retirement” programs at a growing number of colleges and universities across the country, to online courses that can be customized to each ageless student's personal learning objectives.

And why not? For many of us, our college or university years were the best times of our lives – a time for learning and a time for exciting experiences, challenging discussions, building new friendships, or just hanging out and having fun. Almost before you knew it, those years were gone, replaced by a total immersion in marriage, family and work.

Now, in retirement, you can have the opportunity to re-visit it all over again on your own terms. You can learn because you want to broaden your knowledge, to build new skills, to pursue a long-held dream, to discover new interests, to achieve personal growth, or just for the joy of it.

Like every other aspect of your retirement, there is a cost associated with learning in the golden years. And that's where prudent financial planning comes in. If your retirement dream includes a return to the classroom, your financial plan should also include a way to pay for it.

One effective strategy is to expand the investment strategy in your Registered Retirement Savings Plans (RRSPs) to cover the extra costs of your third-age adventures in learning. An RRSP is the best tax-deferred, retirement savings-builder available to most Canadians, and through a well-considered investment strategy, it can be a prime source of money for all your retirement needs, including that course of study you always wanted to experience.

Another option is to establish a Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP) for yourself. RESPs are a great way to save for a child's education, but they are not just for children. People of any age can benefit from the tax-deferred savings opportunities offered by an RESP, however, “older” RESP plan holders will not receive the added benefit of the Canadian Education Savings Grant* and other government grants that are available only to plan beneficiaries of younger ages.

If you're thinking of joining the “booming” trend to education in retirement, or if you're considering other options for making retirement the best time of your life, remember this: A professional financial planner can help you achieve the financial security that will make all your retirement dreams come true.

* Canada Education Savings Grant is sponsored by Human Resources & Skills Development Canada

(Submitted by Damon Smith, Investors Group Financial Services Inc.) For more information call 888.335.1362.

This column, written and published by Investors Group Financial Services Inc (in Quebec – a Financial Services Firm)., is presented as a general source of information only and is not intended as a solicitation to buy or sell investments, nor is it intended to provide professional advice including, without limitation, investment, financial, legal, accounting or tax advice. For more information on this topic or on any other investment or financial matters, please contact your Investors Group Consultant.

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