News Release
September 01, 2005
Research shows public frustration over college costs
Length of time to earn degree a major factorIndianapolis - Recent opinion research demonstrates frustration over the rising cost of college and reveals consensus in one area that, if tackled, could ease costs: reducing the time it takes for students to earn a four-year degree.
Doing so would have a significant impact, given that only 37 percent of students currently earn a degree in four years, according to The Education Trust. Finding ways to ensure that more students graduate “on-time” can therefore lower the amount students spend.
This potential strategy emerged from focus groups conducted in four major cities with several key audiences most affected by the cost of higher education: Parents, college administrators, policy-makers, and business leaders. All agree that it is taking too long for students to earn degrees, and that one of the best ways to reduce costs is to ensure that students graduate in four years.
Lumina Foundation for Education, an Indianapolis-based private foundation, sponsored the research conducted by Washington D.C.-based Widmeyer Communications. The research included panels of stakeholders in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, and Los Angeles. The research provides anecdotal evidence of the views of those embroiled in the effects of rising college costs. Participants in the focus group research included:
- College administrators at public and private four-year colleges and universities and community colleges in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago and Los Angeles.
- Parents of high school juniors and seniors with incomes of $30,000 or less.
- Representatives of higher education associations.
- Federal policymakers.
- Senior business executives.
“Headlines about the rising cost might lead many to believe the nation is backsliding to an era when college was out of reach for all but the privileged few,” said Lumina Foundation President and CEO Martha D. Lamkin. “Fortunately, these focus groups showed that people are willing to get beyond the blame game and find ways for colleges, the government and the private sector to work together for long term change. We are not tilting at windmills here. While we know the problem can’t be met overnight, it can be solved.”
Participants could agree on the following strategies for reducing time to degree completion:
Improved credit transfer policies are among best ways to reduce “time to degree.” Recognizing that many of today’s students are taking at least six years to earn bachelors degrees, most participants enthusiastically embraced measures that would ensure more students graduate on time, thereby paying less for a college degree. Suggested measures included relaxing restrictions on the transfer of credits. Participants also agreed, to varying degrees, that four-year colleges and universities should more readily accept credit transfers from community colleges and advanced curriculum high school programs.
“Four-year colleges need to be more public about their willingness to accept community college credits,” said one respondent, a writer and editor on higher education issues. “We need a standardized definition at the state level so if you take Psychology 101, everyone knows what that means.”
Executive officers from state offices of higher education strongly agreed on the need to encourage credit transfers, and noted that there are many initiatives under way to do so. While college administrators and representatives expressed some concern about how this practice could influence academic quality and affect the right of institutions to set their own curriculum standards, most indicated flexibility on the issue.
Shoring up skills and knowledge among under-prepared students is vital. All groups agreed that too many students are entering college under-prepared and that many need to take more rigorous courses in high school. Federal policymakers say more federal funds should help students become better prepared for college while they’re in high school, as opposed to offering the funds to colleges for use in remedial programs.
Participants also talked at length about encouraging “less prepared” students to attend community colleges prior to four-year colleges. Reasons cited included lower costs
to students, lower costs to states, and a better opportunity for students to build needed skills and knowledge before enrolling in four-year institutions.
Students, not colleges, should receive the most incentives to graduate on time. Virtually all participants agree that incentives to graduate on time should be directed to students and their families, rather than to colleges. Suggestions included tying Pell grants to a rigorous curriculum and giving incentives to students to take advanced Placement courses and college-level credit courses in high schools.
Participants favored rewards for colleges and universities that step up efforts to foster on-time graduation. Participants also spoke favorably of institutions that are offering pre-baccalaureate certificates to keep students on the path to productive careers.
Other approaches to managing college costs
Aside from discussing constructive ways to decrease time to degree, the focus groups also considered other strategies for coping with rising college costs.
Shared services can lower costs. Federal policymakers all agreed that colleges must share costs through group buying of technology, equipment, electricity, commodities and outsourcing. Yet college administrators and business executives believe that these practices have a limited impact on lowering costs. However, most believe that a “shared services model” – such as that used by the Five College Consortium in Massachusetts – show more promise. Through this model, students maximize instructional choice by being able to take classes at any of the five institutions, and financial officers at the schools identify areas where they can cooperatively buy in bulk and thereby save expenses.
Low-income students need to be better informed about financial aid. A number of educators believe that that many low-income students and their families are missing out on financial aid because they don’t know it’s available, and one higher education association representative cited an American Council on Education report that supports that view. Others noted that the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), the universally required federal financial aid form, is difficult to complete and that it may prevent some low-income families from applying for financial aid. One State Higher Education Executive Officer observed that only a fraction of eligible students file a FAFSA, so there may be many students out there who could qualify for financial aid but don’t go through the process.”
Most said that the FAFSA should be improved but not eliminated. Overall, the participants agree that public education campaigns about the cost of college should educate low-income students and families about opportunities for financial aid.
Conventional wisdom that saving for college is futile should be corrected. While all participants agreed that it’s important to convince students and their families to save money for college, they do not believe that college will ever again be affordable to low- and middle-income families without support from grants and loans. They also do not believe that most of these families will use the alternative strategy, which is combining savings with tax-deferred programs. Respondents believe that many families who could benefit from this approach avoid it because they think it will hinder their ability to receive financial aid. One higher education association representative noted that families often perceive that “the more money they’ve saved, the less money the government and colleges will give them.”
Partnerships with the private sector will yield better results. Participants from the private sector expressed concern that the higher education community was not addressing their interests. They want colleges to be more accountable, and to produce more graduates who are qualified for the workforce. While one business executive noted his belief that community colleges are more “nimble” at addressing employer concerns than four-year institutions, participants discussed at length the need for collaboration between schools and businesses to address workforce needs.
With no single cause, there is no single solution. Participants generally agreed that the college cost crisis developed over a number of years, as a result of a number of factors. There was universal agreement that higher education institutions, state governments, the federal government and even high schools must work together to address the issues that lead to rising costs.
More on college costs initiative
The research provided by these focus groups serves to inform Lumina Foundation’s work to help generate constructive discussion and solutions on the college cost issue. This work began last summer with a policy brief, “Rising college costs threaten America’s future and require shared solutions” and a Call for Solutions.
Several of the solutions generated by the call will be featured at a November summit in Washington, D.C., sponsored by the Foundation. Following the summit, Lumina Foundation will continue to engage a variety of stakeholders in efforts to address solutions that have been proven effective for making college more affordable and, therefore, more accessible for qualified students of all ages, particularly those from low- and middle-income households.
About Lumina Foundation
Lumina Foundation for Education, an Indianapolis-based, private,
independent foundation, strives to help people achieve their potential by expanding access and success in education beyond high school. Through grants for research, innovation, communication, and evaluation, as well as policy education and leadership development, Lumina Foundation addresses issues that affect access and educational attainment among all students, particularly underserved student groups, including adult learners. The Foundation bases its mission on the belief that postsecondary education remains one of the most beneficial investments that individuals can make in themselves and that society can make in its people.
For more information, contact Dollyne Sherman, director of communication for Lumina Foundation, at 317.951.5493 or Chris Beakey at Widmeyer Communications at 202.667.0901.
