Study finds national increase in financial aid
A study released this week from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) reported that 63 percent of undergraduates in the United States received some form of financial aid in the 2003-2004 school year.The report shows a marked increase from the 55 percent level reported in the 1999-2000 academic year, when the survey was last taken.
The study was based on surveys completed by an estimated 80,000 undergraduates across the country who attend colleges or universities qualified to participate in federal aid programs.
Students in the 2003-2004 year received an average of $7,400 each, up from $6,200 in 1999-2000, according to the National Postsecondary Student Aid Study, also run by the NCES. Forty-six percent of the students who received financial aid received it from the federal government, according to the report.
The NCES has performed the survey every three or four years since 1986.
Students at private colleges and universities have more breathing roomThe Society for College and University Planning (SCUP) released a report from its second annual nationwide survey of campus facilities. The report said that private colleges and universities have significantly more space per student than public institutions do. Private institutions were anywhere from 40 to 80 percent larger than were public ones, according to the report.
The survey compiled information from almost 200 public and private colleges and universities from around the the United States.
The survey found significant differences between public and private colleges and universities in a variety of subcategories of campus space such as classroom size, athletic facilities and library space, according to the SCUP. For example, the amount of library space per student was largest in four-year colleges with student populations of 10,000 to 24,999.
The federal government formerly controlled this survey, but stopped collecting data in 1974.
Low-income students will no longer have obligation to pay tuition at YaleYale President Richard Levin announced last Thursday that Yale University will no longer expect students whose families earn less than $45,000 per year to contribute financially to the school. According to Levin, students whose families earn between $45,000 and $60,000 will also receive a reduction in tuition costs.
The changes will go into effect in the 2005-2006 academic year and will affect new and continuing students at the University.
Yale officials said that students will be expected to pay for the tuition fully through other means such as grants and work-study.
Harvard, Dartmouth and the University of Virginia also have similar programs.
- Compiled by Brian McPartland from the Chronicle of Higher Education
