The Types of Financial Aid Available to College Students

Prospective and current college students should be aware of all financial aid options to further their educations.  The following infographic provides information about the types of assistance available to these students. Continue Reading

Study Reveals that African-American Males Most Likely to Lose Academic Scholarships

College student retention and low graduation rates are the most significant problems associated with state-provided financial aid. Now, a University of Missouri researcher has found that African-American males are the most likely to lose state lottery-funded scholarships with academic stipulations. Charles Menifield, a professor in the Truman School of Public Affairs at MU, found that more than 50 percent of African-American males lost state-funded scholarships over the course of a four-year academic career. Continue Reading

Survey Finds Large Majorities Concerned about Student Debt, Opposed to Cutting Pell Grants and Loan Subsidies

While they believe that higher education is more important today than it was for their parents’ generation, most U.S. adults age 18 to 34 also view college as harder to afford than just five years ago. They feel that people are leaving school with too much debt, and they oppose proposals to cut federal student aid, according to a survey released by three national policy organizations.  Lake Research Partners and Bellwether Research and Consulting conducted the bi-partisan national survey, which was commissioned by The Institute for College Access & Success (TICAS), Demos, and Young Invincibles. Among the survey’s key findings and themes:

Higher Education: More Important, Less Affordable, Too Much Debt
More than three in four (76%) young adults say that college has become harder to afford in the past five years, and nearly as many (73%) say that graduates have more student debt than they can manage.  When asked about the importance of college and other education and training after high school, about eight in 10 say it is more important than a generation ago. Whether or not they have a college degree or student debt, most young people share these views and concerns. Continue Reading