October 31, 2024

While paying for college has always been a challenge for many individuals and families, the often opaque nature of how institutions present information about costs and financial aid has made the decision-making process even harder.

The good news for students and families is that more than 620 institutions have come together over the last year to make this process easier by providing simple and clear pricing and financial aid information to students and families as part of the College Cost Transparency Initiative. Those institutions are now actively improving their financial aid offers by: 

• Being transparent and ensuring that costs are understandable for students and families, including the most accurate estimate possible of a student’s costs.
• Describing and explaining all types of aid offered using standardized, plain language.
• Prominently displaying critical components, such as an estimate of the student’s total cost of attendance, broken down by costs to be paid to the institution and those paid to others; types and sources of financial aid being offered; an estimated net price; and more.

DUAL ENROLLMENT POPULARITY, EFFICACY

Dual enrollment is widely available to students: About 90 percent of public high schools nationwide offer it, and 2.5 million high school students took college classes in 2023-23, according to a new study from the Community College Research Center at Columbia University’s Teachers College and the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. But does this expansive new report definitively answer whether dual enrollment is actually helping the students who need it most?

Read more.

UNDERSTANDING AND TRUSTING DIGITAL BADGES

They are known by many names — digital badges, credentials, certificates — and are offered by many companies, experts, institutions, and even social media influencers. But while they were created with hopes that their validity would draw more people to short-term learning, a new report from UpSkill America, a project of The Aspen Institute, shows employers find digital badges confusing and of limited value in hiring.​​ Read more.

CAREER COACHING AS A GAME-CHANGER

Quality education-to-career coaching helps bridge the gap between education and employment, according to a new Strada report, but not every student receives that kind of guidance. In fact, just 1 in 5 recent graduates of public four-year institutions received the three elements the report defines as quality coaching. Read More.

ANNOUNCEMENT: A new academic center at American University will research policies to improve the affordability and outcomes of postsecondary education in the U.S.

HIRE: Strada welcomes Beth Cobert as President of Strategic Partnerships and Affiliates.

CONVENING: At the Braven Summit Ruth V. Watkins, Strada President of Postsecondary Education, discussed ways to support college students on their quest to access quality internships.