Confusion about the cost of college is a key factor in the erosion of public trust in higher education, according to new Strada research released this week.
Fewer than half of students and parents strongly trust public colleges to charge a fair price, and only 1 in 3 find the financial aid process straightforward.
Based on a survey of more than 5,000 individuals, the report explores both the current climate and the potential for new approaches to pricing and transparency about the cost of college. Among the key findings:
Students and families see value in higher education and the career opportunities it creates. The vast majority, between 70 and 90 percent, of respondents who were considering college or were currently attending or had a child currently attending said that a college education was extremely or very important. For the general population, just over half (58 percent) thought college was extremely or very important.
Financial aid and college costs are confusing. Conceptualizing and understanding college costs remains a difficult task. Without guidance, students and families do not appear able to construct a coherent prediction of the cost of college.
Confusion about costs and financial aid may be breeding mistrust in colleges and universities. A correlation found that the more confused students are about financial aid and price, the more skeptical they are of colleges’ motivations.
There is a strong desire for price clarity and predictability, and solutions-oriented action. Roughly two-thirds of respondents prioritized cost transparency, four-year price guarantees, four-year financial aid guarantees, and a single, all-in price for the year when identifying solutions.
Throughout 2025, enrollment management leaders, financial aid administrators, admissions professionals, and student advocates from across higher education came together with one goal: to create shared principles for institutional enrollment management practices.
Motivated by how confusion surrounding the cost of college contributes to distrust in higher education, the leaders sought to ground these Principles of Enrollment Management in price transparency.
The resulting Principles, released this week, have been endorsed by a growing coalition of organizations and institutions of higher education.
CONFERENCE:At the Non-Degree Credentials Research Network Spring Conference in Washington, D.C., Strada’s Dana Brandt will moderate a panel of researchers working on some of the field’s most important data gaps around nondegree credentials and employment outcomes.
DATA DISPLAY:Data from the State Opportunity Index, which considers graduates’ ability to achieve success after postsecondary education in all 50 states and Washington, D.C., is now available in three different views: complete state data, a state comparison tool, and focus areas by state.
REFLECTION:Fifty years ago, a Newsweek cover story asked: “Who Needs College?” Strada President and CEO Stephen Moret reflects on how the nation’s relationship with higher education has changed in the decades since and offers five bipartisan moves needed to improve the system.
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