Using data to understand revenue and expenditure patterns in higher education is crucial toward building knowledge of higher education policy. This brief from the Urban Institute highlights data from the Office of Federal Student Aid on institutions’ 90/10 ratios, financial responsibility composite scores, graduate and undergraduate loans, and campus-based awards.
Why Washington Must Tie COVID Relief for Colleges to Relief for Students Burdened by Institutional Debt
Feb. 1, 2021
An issue brief from the Student Borrower Protection Center examines how debt owed by students directly to schools presents unique challenges, and how Washington can provide relief to students and borrowers burdened by these debts as part of the overall higher education response to COVID.
Sometimes Very Little Goes Toward Educating Students.
Dec. 9, 2020
Even before the pandemic, many students were left in the dark about how institutions spent their money, unaware of how much goes toward their own academic benefit vs. other activities such as marketing or recruitment of new students. This brief from Third Way examines how federally funded institutions spend the money they receive from taxpayers and students.
Students who received Pell grants for short-term training programs were more likely to enroll at a postsecondary institution and complete a program, says a report from the Institute of Education Sciences.
A college degree remains critical to unlocking opportunity and to accessing America’s middle class, yet millions of students who pursue higher education never earn degrees. A new report from America Forward, MDRC, New America, Results for America, and The Institute for College Access and Success draws lessons and policy implications from two decades of rigorous research in…
State directors of community colleges say that federal CARES Act funding helped students in their states with the transition to remote learning, according to this survey from the Education Policy Center at the University of Alabama.
Separating Pell Eligibility From an Equitable Formula for Measuring Ability to Pay
Oct. 14, 2020
Simplifying the student aid application process and making the system easier for students and families to understand and navigate has long been high on the agenda of policymakers and advocates for college access. This report from the Urban Institute examines issues central to simplifying the Pell grant system and discusses strategies to strengthen the system for allocating aid from…
If higher education is the key to prosperity and social mobility, then access to college should be considered a basic human right, argues a new report from the National Association for College Admission Counseling. The study offers six recommendations to fundamentally change the current educational system and provide equal opportunity for all students to achieve…
A report from the Institute for Higher Education Policy shares insights from a diverse array of stakeholders about the Federal Student-Level Data Network, the data elements and definitional options needed to meet pending legislative requirements, how to maximize the quality and utility of the data, and what can be done to minimize the burden on…
Pandemic-Themed Ads: Most Colleges Don’t Have Them, but Some Do
Aug. 18, 2020
Colleges and universities are ramping up their advertising budgets during the pandemic, particularly for-profit colleges, according to a new study by the Century Foundation. The study suggests that policymakers institute limits on college spending on such ads if schools use federal funds, as well as require them to be transparent about how much they pay…
