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The article discusses the opportunities and challenges for public and private universities in the U.S. with the continuous rise in higher education in the U.S. It predicts the implementation of cost-cutting measures such as online teaching, and the increasing use of non-tenure-track instructors by public universities and colleges to deal with the rising costs. It highlights the erosion of higher quality education with the implementation of cost-cutting plans.

Free higher education has become a major policy discussion of the past few years, one that is often debated or supported along partisan lines. Those supporting this policy initiative often point to the rising cost of a college education and the barrier it creates for underrepresented populations hoping to access higher education. Others point to a broken financial aid system that leaves more individuals financing their education through student loans, adding to a massive national loan debt now exceeding a trillion dollars. Various arguments for and against a free-tuition program within the American higher education system are addressed. While an argument can be made that all public American higher education should be tuition-free, limiting a large-scale federal program to the American community college has economic and political implications that could make the policy more feasible for a larger percentage of the American public. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As college costs rise in the United States, many parents are forced to make difficult decisions about how to pay for their children's higher education. Stress and conflict accompany financial issues and play a role in the financial picture for many families. Using Hill's (Hill, Social casework 39:139–150, 1958) ABC-X model of family stress as a framework, this study describes results of a national survey of parents contributing to student loan payments for their child's education and explores how this experience may play a role in familial conflict. Findings suggest marked gender differences in the relationship between contribution reason and the experience of conflict. Results also carry implications for financial professionals, suggesting a need for family-focused and gender-conscious financial education both before and during the student loan repayment process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently college promise programs are proliferating in number at the local and state levels. Most promise programs provide financial resources beyond conventional state and federal student aid to students who live in designated places and meet local‐ or state‐defined eligibility criteria. There is an immense variety of models and funding designs for these programs. In this study, we conducted a rigorous content analysis of the public web sites for a diverse subsample of 35 promise programs to explore how college promise programs promote student academic and financial readiness. Although our analysis made it clear that there is more to learn about promise programs, including understanding general administrative processes and program operations, we highlight several design and implementation considerations that may increase the capacity of these programs to promote equity in higher education access and success. Report Number: ETS RR–18‐41 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

I began using the theme of education in my first-year composition courses at Kingsborough Community College because it is one context that I am sure that I share with my class, something we all have some degree of access to and opinions about. Because so many students rightly relate the issues of college cost and loan debt to class mobility, I have dedicated a second unit of my course specifically to the topic of class and education. I try to remind my students that their problems are a part of larger political and economic systems. This tends to steer the conversation away from shallow arguments of self-interest and toward deeper understandings of systems and structures. What if more students were able to make meaningful connections between their lived experiences and political discourse? Such analysis is crucial, not just for students to perform better in the academic environment, but also as a means of supporting an informed and active democracy. [Extracted from the article]

The article discusses the importance of making smarter financial decisions concerning college costs by students and their need to be open to learning and understanding about college finance and affordability. It notes that students are often confused about college costs, which complicates the selection process for some students or disappoint others because a school is not within their reach financially. NACAC offers extensive information in its Knowledge Center regarding foreign students.

The rising price of higher education and its implications for equity and accessibility have been extensively documented, but the material conditions of students’ lives are often overlooked. Data from more than 30,000 two- and 4-year college students indicate that approximately half are food insecure, and recent estimates suggest that at least 20% of 2-year college students have very low levels of food security. At least one-third of 2-year students are housing insecure, including up to 14% who are homeless, whereas between 11% and 19% of 4-year students are housing insecure. Most of these students work and receive financial aid, but only a fraction receive public or private assistance to help make ends meet. Implications for research on college affordability and efforts to boost college graduation rates are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reflects on the impact of student debt on the crisis in higher education in the U.S. Topics discussed include an overview of the education in the country, the financial resources of the students, the costs and expenses of their education, and the availability of loans and subsidies for the students.

Abstract: College promise programs are spreading throughout this United States. These programs fund tuition and/or fees for eligible students who are actively progressing toward earning postsecondary certificates and undergraduate degrees. While existing college promise programs have varying designs, each one appears to be seeking continuous and long‐term financial sustainability. The existing programs appear to be aimed toward ensuring that the promise of college tuition and fees can be fulfilled for future generations of students. Towards that end, ETS and the College Promise Campaign convened the “Designing Sustainable Funding for College Promise Initiatives” conference on June 2 and 3, 2016, for the primary purpose of reviewing and refining five models. This report contains the five papers that the appointed design teams presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discussions of college costs often focus on tuition and fees, but living cost allowances for room, board, and other expenses account for more than half of the total cost of attending college. The allowances, developed by colleges and universities, also affect student eligibility for federal financial aid and the accuracy of accountability systems. This study examined institutional variation in living cost allowances and assessed the consistency of allowances by comparing them to living cost estimates specific to the college's region. Results across multiple specifications indicated that nearly half of all colleges provide living-cost allowances at least 20% above or below estimated county-level living expenses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

First-generation students compose a subpopulation within the institution of higher education, which exhibits its own set of resources in areas such as academic preparation, support systems, family background, and finances to apply to education. This quantitative study examined gaps and barriers to resources currently available to assist the population. The researchers utilized four pre-developed demographic questions along with a 34-item survey instrument assessing the experiences of first generation students, to gather the data presented in the study. The analysis involved coding and elementary data analysis of demographics and reporting frequencies. The 200 participants in the study identified as first-generation students at four-year universities within the United States. The majority of the participants surveyed were white (69.5%; n= 139),1 between the ages of 17 and 26 (94.5%; n=189), and from families within the middle-class income bracket of (39.5%; n= 79). The results indicated that most common barrier to participants attending college was tuition-cost (63%; n=126), followed by a lack of information about a college, such as financial aid availability and required documents (34.5%; n=69). Over 64% (n=129) received support or guidance from support networks in the form of parents and/or guardians. The study provided information about the issues encountered by firstgeneration students, as well as the accessed support networks, and preferred resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Increasing financial challenges have resulted in great debt among medical graduates worldwide. In Singapore, more scholarships and bursaries have been disbursed in recent years to support students who are financially challenged. We aimed to study the financial status of medical students in National University of Singapore (NUS) Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine (i.e. NUS Medicine), Singapore, and the financial support available to them.Methods: A cross-sectional quantitative study was performed. Surveys were distributed and completed by medical students of NUS Medicine. Information regarding household income, financial assistance, monthly allowance and expense, and concurrent occupations was collected. We compared our findings with the results of a similar study performed in 2007 and national income data.Results: A total of 956 (66.2%) out of 1,445 medical students completed the survey. 19.5% and 58.5% of respondents came from households with monthly incomes < SGD 3,000 and > SGD 7,000, respectively. 20.6% of students had loans, 18.9% had scholarships and bursaries, and 14.4% worked to support themselves.Conclusion: Medical school fees have risen by more than 50% over the past ten years. Our study found that there were increases in the proportion of students from both the lower- and higher-income segments, with proportionally fewer students from the middle-income segment. A large number of students were working and/or had some form of financial support. More should be done to meet the needs of financially challenged medical students to ensure equal access to quality medical education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One way in which financial aid is thought to promote college success is by minimizing the time students spend working. Yet, little research has examined if this intended first-order effect occurs, and results are mixed. We leverage a randomized experiment and find that students from low-income families in Wisconsin offered additional grant aid were 5.88 percentage points less likely to work and worked 1.69 fewer hours per week than similar peers, an 8.56% and 14.35% reduction, respectively. Students offered the grant also improved qualitative aspects of their work experiences; they were less likely to work extensively, during the morning hours, or overnight. Grant aid thus appears to partially offset student employment, possibly improving prospects for academic achievement and attainment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Congress enacted the College Cost Reduction and Access Act (CCRAA) to improve college access for unaccompanied homeless youth by expanding the definition of 'independent student' on their financial aid applications. Using qualitative interviews with homeless community college students and university financial aid administrators (FAA), this research explored the implementation of this policy. This study indicates that multiple barriers to financial aid for homeless youth continue to persist after the passage of CCRAA. Youth reported burdensome verification procedures and FAAs reported extensive justification to prove youth homelessness and attempts to support students. Efforts to increase these youths' ability to receive financial aid include revisions to the verification procedures and specialized trainings. Specific recommendations for practice, policy, and research are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Large differences often exist between a college's sticker price and net price after accounting for financial aid. Net price calculators (NPCs) were designed to help students more accurately estimate their actual costs to attend a given college. This study assesses the accuracy of information provided by net price calculators. Specifically, we compare NPC estimates of financial aid to actual aid packages for a sample of low-income, first-time college students at seven postsecondary institutions which all utilize the federal template NPC. We find that NPC estimates of grant aid correlate highly with actual grant aid on average, but variation in individual financial aid packages among socioeconomically similar students can be substantial. We offer four recommendations. First, NPC aid estimates should include information on variability, and potentially, on sources of that variability. Second, a basic metric of academic merit such as SAT/ACT scores and GPA should be an optional addition to the federal template NPC. Third, institutions should update the data underlying their NPCs annually. Finally, we recommend that institutions use the "Explanations and Caveats" options on the federal NPC template to include additional information that may be helpful for students and families in anticipating their likely college aid and expenses. Our findings have implications for federal policy related to NPCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Undocumented students, many of Hispanic origin, face among the strictest cost barriers to higher education in the United States. Lack of legal status excludes them from most state and all federal financial aid programs. Furthermore, most states require them to pay out-of-state tuition rates at publicly supported institutions. In a new direction, boards of trustees at universities in several states have bypassed the legislative process to lower the cost barrier. This policy article evaluates one such university-level innovation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Widening participation has opened higher education ( HE) to diverse learners, but in doing so has created challenges negotiating situations of disadvantaged positioning compared with peers conforming more closely to the ideal 'bachelor boy' student. As one of the most financially vulnerable groups of students, lone parents occupy a doubly precarious position negotiating the challenges, including financial constraints, of both university participation and raising children alone. Their experiences of HE participation are particularly important to understand as increasing financial precariousness of both studentship and lone parenthood squeezes them further through concurrent rising university fees and welfare cuts. This paper draws on insights from longitudinal qualitative research with 77 lone mothers in England to explore the negotiation of social and economic risks and rewards involved in their undertaking of a debt-financed higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the United States there are significant gaps in college-going between high-income and low-income students and between White students and African American and Latino/a students. A number of factors contribute to this persistent gap. Among these factors are the rising cost of college attendance and the complexity of the financial aid process. The present study describes how a group of low-income students of color at a New York City high school learned about the costs associated with college attendance and participated in the financial aid process. Drawing on data collected during a one-year ethnographic study, this article examines what students initially believed about the cost of college and the availability of financial aid, how the students' high school supported them through the financial aid process, and challenges students faced. Results from the study suggest that the textual complexity of the financial aid process, uneven support from counselors, and the high cost of college posed challenges for many students. However, those students who formed relationships with trusted advisors or "literacy sponsors" were more likely to successfully complete the financial aid process and enroll in college. The article ends with a discussion of implications for theory and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined state efforts to control tuition increases over the past 10 years. Using data from 50 states and 540 public 4-year universities and colleges, we examined average tuition increases in dollar amount and percentage of change by the type of state tuition control policy and by the authority for tuition-setting power. The state policy efforts considered for this study include setting tuition caps, providing incentives, and linking tuition policy to financial aid policy. Findings revealed that two state policies (i.e., linking tuition to financial aid and providing incentives to limit the tuition increase) are effective in controlling tuition. Tuition was more likely to increase when individual institutions have tuition-setting authority. This study also reveals that a state’s tuition cap policy can adversely affect tuition control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]