The experiences of California college and university students suggest that Hope credits and Lifetime Learning credits, federal tax credits designed to help working students and middle-class families afford college, are having a limited impact. Award calculation, income limits, tax liability policy, college costs, and financial aid all affect the…

Examines individual high school graduates' postsecondary enrollment decisions, focusing on effects of institutional cost and proximity. Estimates a multinomial logit model of enrollment probability, using data from the 1980 High School and Beyond Survey. Improving vocationally oriented youths' financial accessibility to two-year colleges is more…

A discussion of prepaid college tuition plans, operational in a dozen states, finds that they have proven viable but present problems in three areas: (1) their structure must not redistribute state resources to the relatively wealthy; (2) participation may create pressure on admissions policy; and (3) state legislatures may see the accumulated…

Analyzes data on financing U.S. higher education, especially the role governments, institutions, and families play in meeting college costs. Finds fewer affluent students attending private four-year colleges and an increasing concentration of lower income students at community colleges. Considers implications in light of the rising economic value…

A discussion of the current cost and financing of higher education looks at how higher education has been treated in federal policy in recent years, its status in public policy in the near future, including some salient uncertainties, and college cost and student debt. Emphasis is given to trends in the cost of professional education. (MSE)

An analysis of the costs of dental education and student debt looks at national health expenditures, their relationship to student costs for dental education, and trends in student indebtedness and professional income. A debt rate rising faster than general economic growth is foreseen, suggesting an unhealthy economic climate for new graduates.…

Investigated the impact of student characteristics and financial aid awards on degree completion rates of 2-year college students. Found that less than one-third obtained their degree, less than one-tenth of completers had a high school GPA of less than 2.0, federal loans and work study were positive predictors of degree completion, and federal…

Analyzes the influence of student aid on enrollment decisions of all accepted applicants at four institutions. Student aid was negatively associated with first-time enrollment, indicating that, in most cases, the amount of aid available was insufficient relative to the cost of college attendance. This suggests that institutions need to study their…

During spring 2001, Noel-Levitz created a student loan default model for the University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin). The goal of this project was to identify students most likely to default, to identify as risk elements those characteristics that contributed to student loan default, and to use these risk elements to plan and implement targeted,…

The crisis of affordability in higher education is intensifying. Illustrations of its resonance abound: from the frequent news articles describing and amplifying the crisis and its sources to legislators' and candidates' proposed responses. Republicans' responses tend to be mainly punitive toward institutions; Democrats' proposals are more…

In this article, the author discusses the final report from the Education Secretary's Commission on the Future of Higher Education--officially released on September 19 under the title "A Test of Leadership: Charting the Future of U.S. Higher Education." The report has its fair share of advocates and antagonists. But as with the NCLB…

Because so many Americans can afford to save for children's college costs but do not, it is proposed that employers take a more active role in promoting college financial planning. Possible solutions include company-sponsored contributory accounts, educational savings plans; payroll deduction plans, educational annuity programs, subsidized or…

Three plans for reforming the financing of students wishing to attend college, therefore improving college affordability, are outlined: (1) improving the college loan system; (2) mitigating high tuition with high student aid; and (3) making comprehensive changes at all levels of the college finance system (the Plan of the National Commission on…

A 1953 article outlining procedures used at Harvard University (MA) for analyzing a student's need for financial aid is reprinted here because it is felt to reflect the basic principles of sound student financial aid policy. (MSE)

A survey of 973 students in a variety of academic programs at the University of Coventry (England) returning from summer vacations gathered information about summer employment experiences and income. Income levels for students employed full and part time were then compared with student contribution requirements for student financial aid. (MSE)