Romania: What do I want to do when I grow up?

The online survey - “What do I want to do when I grow up?” – carried out by Aviva Romania has underlined how important it is to a parent to discuss their child’s professional future.

  • 66% of Romanians are interested in their child’s professional future
  • 74% think that they can influence the choice of career to a greater or lesser extent
  • 40% have considered the problem of access to higher education from the financial perspective
  • 73% have needed financial support during their studies

The online survey - “What do I want to do when I grow up?” – carried out by Aviva Romania has underlined how important it is to a parent to discuss their child’s professional future, but that in reality very few are considering the financial resources needed to provide their children with a successful start in life and support them in their chosen careers.

Over 80% of respondents stated that, during their studies, they were forced either to work (49.32%) or to study harder in order to get a student grant (22.43%), or to take out loans which they paid back later on (8.56%). Nevertheless, very few people do anything aimed at providing a sum of money for their child’s studies.

In spite of this, less than half of respondents have given serious thought to the problem of their child’s ability to access higher education from the financial perspective.

The amount of money which the child needs to have at his or her disposal varies from €1,000 to over €5,000, with most people considering that €3,000 per year would be a reasonable amount to support them through their studies.

“It’s no coincidence that we’ve chosen study time – the start of September. Our intention was that, by choosing a time like this – starting school – we could draw parents’ attention to the fact that it’s time to take an interest in your children’s future and not only in terms of talking about it.

"Most life insurance companies have products in their portfolios designed for children’s studies and which, in exchange for a modest annual amount of money, can ensure that their child has a successful start in life and the opportunity to study at any prestigious university at home or abroad,” stated Shah Rouf, CEO of Aviva Romania.

“In the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, plans for children are the best-selling products in insurance companies’ portfolios, because most people have understood how these products work and recognise the importance of insuring against “the unexpected” and unwanted events which may prevent their child from pursuing their dream and getting to where they want to be,” Shah Rouf went on.

“In the Romanian market products for children are still in their infancy, but they’re on an upward trend and we hope that in a few years’ time they achieve the level of maturity in other countries and that children in Romania have access to their chosen career,” Shah Rouf concluded.

-ends-

For further information: 
Lavinia Pavel – Brand Communication Coordinator
Telephone: 0723 310 378
E-mail: lavinia.pavel@aviva.ro

Notes for editors:

  • None of the findings of the Aviva survey may be reproduced without acknowledging the source: Aviva Life Insurance.
  • The online survey was carried out on a sample of 1,000 people from across the country

About the Aviva Group
Aviva is the oldest insurance group in the world and the largest in Great Britain, dating back to 1696.

Today, Aviva has 54,000 employees and 50 million customers in 28 countries across the world.

The group is the market leader for life insurance and pensions in Europe, leading on the majority of the markets in which it operates.

Aviva manages over £352 billion worth of funds*, putting Aviva in fifth place in the top flight of international insurance companies. 

Aviva Group Romania
Aviva Group Romania includes three companies: Aviva Life Insurance, Aviva Management Company for a Private Pension Fund, Aviva Investors Romania (purchased in November 2007).

About Aviva Life Insurance and Aviva Management Company for a Private Pension Fund
Aviva began operating as a provider of life insurance in Romania in 2000, currently holding a portfolio of over 850,000 customers and managing £27 million worth of funds. In 2007 Aviva set up a company to administer the mandatory pension fund – Pensia Viva, which currently has a portfolio of over 300,000 customers.

About Aviva Investors Romania
Aviva Investors Romania currently administers €15 million in four mutual funds, each based around a different type of investment: Aviva Investors (AI) Intercapital (a shares fund), AI Capital Plus (a diversified fund), AI Orizont (a fixed-income – bonds – fund) and AI Tezaur (a monetary fund). Aviva Investors Romania also administers individual investment accounts.

Aviva Investors Romania has shown throughout the years that it is one of the most dynamic and innovative administrators in the market. The company launched the first commission-free sales fund on the Romanian market (AI Tezaur) and the first bonds fund in Romania (AI Orizont). Aviva Investors Romania is also proud to support the growing investment funds market in Romania.

* according to data recorded on 30 June 2008

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