Deep in thought I was alarmed by the sound of a jet flying by my office window yesterday afternoon – a reminder that the annual CNE air show is this weekend – traditionally marking the last long weekend of the summer.

If you are in the city this weekend, it will be worth checking out some amazing sights in the sky over Lake Ontario as the 67th annual Canadian International Air Show is expected to be a good one this year. While you’re at it, the CNE will continue to offer some good old fun and weird food until September 5th. Mark and I made it out to the CNE on the first weekend with friends and dared to sample some of the most outrageous foods there this year; check them out here and don’t judge me for trying the Krispy Kreme burger (I split it with a friend so it was half the fat…)

Labour Day long weekend also means back to school for most students (some went back already this week) and a true nerd at heart, the smell of brand new vinyl binders still makes me smile. So, with all of the students back at school next week, I thought it would be timely to share some facts about paying for school along with some valuable planning strategies for students.

Let’s break it down:

$17,359 - That is the average cost for one year of post-secondary education for students in Canada. Click here for a breakdown of how we got to that number.

6.3% - This is the average annual increase in university tuition costs since 1990.

20% - This is perhaps the biggest advantage to contributing to an RESP: the CESG — a powerful grant incentive from the federal government. With the basic CESG, the government will add 20% annually to the first $2,500 contributed to an RESP. That adds up to $500 per year. The maximum CESG over the life of the plan is $7,200 per beneficiary. Click here to read more about giving the gift of knowledge and remember that we can manage your family’s RESP here as well.

$1,340,105 – ROI. That is what a student’s bachelor degree translates to in terms of total cumulative earnings.

My team and I also put together a handy tax planning checklist for students last year with 14 great tips which you can download here to share with those heading back to school.

With so much going on and information coming at us from every angle, it's sometimes hard to keep your finger on the pulse of what's happening. In an effort to keep you in-the-know and provide you with some conversation nuggets for the weekend, I've compiled the following hit list to fill your conversation pipeline.

Now you are in-the-know with Word on the Street.

Enjoy the last long weekend of this incredible summer!