Nearly half of affluent US citizens – defined as those with more that $250,000 – say they won’t pay for their children’s entire college education, a Bank of America survey has found, according to media reports.

About 47 per cent of those surveyed in a Merrill Lynch Affluent Insights Survey said they didn’t or won’t pay the full cost of higher education, while 29 per cent said limiting access to parents money will help teach children financial responsibility, says the Boston Globe report.

Other findings included: half of parents said “financial know-how’’ was a trait they hoped to impart to their children; 64 per cent of parents who used a financial advisor said they shared some of their advisor’s guidance with their children; nearly 20 per cent of parents age 51 and older had invited their children to meet with the family’s advisor, says the report.

The research was undertaken by New Jersey-based Braun Research, which contacted 1,000 US citizens with investable assets of $250,000 or more on the behalf of the bank.

BofA was not immediately reachable at the time of going to press.