This paper examines how colleges respond to the introduction of broad merit aid programs. Previous research has emphasized the impact of merit aid on enrollment, student choices, and post-matriculation outcomes. Yet much less is known about how state-implemented merit aid programs affect colleges' financial decisions. To explore impacts, college…

The driving force behind the recent increase in financial aid for college education is the rapid growth of state merit-based grant programs that provide scholarships to students who meet predefined standards of academic preparation at the state level, and this trend represents one of the most pronounced policy shifts away from a long tradition of…

The Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE) commissioned this paper to help policy leaders and decision makers understand the impact of selected state financial aid programs on students' choices--choices of which college to attend, where to attend college, and even whether to attend college at all. As the paper shows, states…

This report contains data on the number and dollar amounts of Minnesota State Grants received by Minnesota undergraduates for Fiscal Year 2004 (academic year 2003-2004). Minnesota State Grants are coordinated with Federal Pell Grants, so the tables and graphs also show combined Federal Pell and State Grant awards. In addition, since ability to pay…

Information on college applications, acceptances, financial aid, and attendance is presented based on base-year and first follow-up data for the National Longitudinal Study and the High School and Beyond Study of the Federal Center for Education Statistics. The focus is on changes that occurred between 1972 and 1980 in the two senior cohorts. Many…

The processes of choosing a college and being accepted by a college are analyzed, based on data on nearly 23,000 seniors from more than 1,300 high schools from the National Longitudinal Study of the Class of 1972. Econometric modeling and descriptive statistics are provided on: student behavior in selecting a college, choosing school/nonschool…

High school seniors who answered that they would choose to borrow, when asked what they would do if college costs were $1,500 more than they, their family, and a scholarship could provide, were significantly more likely to attend college in the next four years than were students who answered that they would choose other options (delaying college…