This report summarizes trends in financing higher education in the United States and is based on various reports of state appropriations and a survey of state higher education finance officers. Among the highlights noted are: state appropriations to higher education reached $52.8 billion in fiscal year 99, an increase of 6.5 percent over the…

The National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS) examines how students who have received financial aid, and their families, pay for postsecondary education. It includes nationally representative samples of undergraduates, graduates, and first-professional students, encompassing students attending less-than-2-year institutions, 2-year schools,…

This report reviews trends affecting rising costs and prices in higher education and proposes an action agenda for colleges, government at all levels, families and students, and other patrons. The recommendations emphasize shared responsibility to (1) strengthen institutional cost control; (2) improve market information and public accountability;…

This book is intended as an overview of the financial management challenges facing colleges and universities. Among the problems identified as affecting institutions are: the demographic decline in the number of 18-year-olds; the belief that tuition costs have become prohibitive for an increasing number of families; reductions in federal subsidies…

This volume discusses the eligibility requirements for student and parent borrowers from federal financial aid programs. It reviews the factors an aid administrator must consider when reviewing a student's application for a loan and outlines the administrator's responsibilities in checking to make sure that recipients qualify for their aid awards.…

A study of families' means of paying for college using data from the National Postsecondary Student Aid Study strongly indicates that part of the process of deciding how students should pay for college is the parents' college financing experience. These effects appear in patterns in parent contribution, amount of financial aid received, and use of…

Examines the total direct and indirect effects of receiving financial aid on persistence to degree using a subsample of 1989 freshmen from the Beginning Postsecondary Student Survey. Analysis shows that although simply receiving financial aid is unrelated to persistence, the effects of financial aid on persistence appear to depend on type and…

A study of graduate and professional student within-year persistence, based on the 1993 National Postsecondary Student Aid Study, compared three models of the impact of financial aid on persistence. It was found that financial aid significantly and positively influenced within-year persistence, with comprehensive aid packages having the greatest…

This report presents seven studies commissioned by the U.S. Department of Education to examine the issue of the rapid rise of college costs during the 1980s and the ability of American students and families to afford higher education. The seven papers are as follows: (1) "The Ability to Afford Higher Education: Past, Present, and Future"…

This advisory report investigates the possible simplification of the Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP) and considers the issue of federal direct lending. The evaluation indicates that complexity in the FFELP is due to multiple, overlapping loan programs with conflicting terms and conditions. Nonstandard policies, procedures, forms, and…

This report summarizes Colorado student aid program expenditures for 1992-93. The report reveals that: (1) the Colorado General Assembly provided $37.2 million for Colorado student aid programs for the 1992-93 fiscal year; (2) the total number of state aid awards and the average award increased in 1992-93 to an average of $908; (3) financial aid…

This document presents seven papers that address several aspects of the new direct lending federal loan program established by the Student Loan Reform Act of 1993. Among the topics examined are the following: (1) the experiences with implementing new student aid programs; (2) the policy questions involved in lending in proprietary (profit-making)…

This study documents the redistribution that began about 1980 of responsibilities for financing higher education from social resources to private resources. It also examines the issues of affordability of higher education that arises from this shift in financial responsibility. Five sets of national data from different sources are examined to…

The purpose of this publication is to describe how a school becomes eligible to participate in the Student Financial Assistance (SFA) programs and to explain the administrative and fiscal requirements of SFA program participation. In addition, this publication discusses other issues relevant to the general administration of the SFA programs. Major…

A survey of 466 students in a large, urban commuter college investigated the relationship of student finances to academic persistence. Results suggest that financial aid (1) equalizes opportunities for students, thus decreasing attractiveness of alternatives, (2) facilitates academic and social integration, and (3) increases student commitment to…