Learning to Lead: Admissions in the 21st Century
Webinar Series
April 28, 2011
Mission:
To increase the number of students who earn a college
degree and who are prepared to succeed in the 21st
century.
Approach:
Areas of Focus
College Preparation & Access
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College Affordability & Financial Aid
Arts at the Core
The CollegeKeys Compact™
School Counselor Advocacy
Teacher Advocacy
Minority Male Achievement
Undocumented Students and the DREAM Act
The National Commission on Writing
College Admission & Completion
– College Completion Agenda
– Access, Admissions & Success: Education and
the America Future
– Admissions in the 21st Century
– Access & Diversity Collaborative
– Community College Transfer & Retention
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Cracking the Student Aid Code
Rethinking Student Aid
Trends in Higher Education
Education Pays
Simplifying State Aid Processes
Rethinking Student Aid: Parent and
Student Focus Groups
Rethinking Student Aid:
A “Package” of Recommendations

Simplify federal student aid system



Eligibility determination and application process
Provide information about college “early and often”
Improve federal loan process

Application, loan limits, borrower protections

Create federal savings program for students from
low-income families

Reward institutions that support student success
RSA Research Objectives

Learn parents’ and students’ reactions to RSA
recommendations




Assess recommendations’ impact on…




Understanding
Support
Questions
College aspirations and access
College planning
Ability to complete college degree
Publish findings: Cracking the Student Aid
Code
Research Methodology

Phase 1: Qualitative


8 in-person focus groups

Baltimore, Chicago, Dallas, San Francisco

“Barrier” students, parents, “non-traditional” students
2 online bulletin board focus groups


National, college students
6 in-depth interviews

“New” Americans’ perspective
Research Methodology

Phase 2: National Quantitative Surveys

1,000 parents: telephone; income qualified; with
children between 11 and 21

Complete survey in English or Spanish

1,000 college students: online; had experienced
completing FAFSA

250 “non-traditional” students: online; income
qualified; age 25+; completed FAFSA
Cracking the Student Aid Code
Key Findings
College education is critical,
even in current economy

Students believe more strongly than parents
College Degree Is "M ore Important than Ever"
100%
80%
93%
94%
College Students
Non-Traditional
Students
70%
60%
40%
20%
0%
Parents
All believe in opportunity &
access, especially students
Parents
Everyone,
regardless of their
ability to pay for it,
should be able to
get a college degree
if they want to
College Students
Non-Traditional
Students
Total
Agree
Agree
Strongly
Total
Agree
Agree
Strongly
Total
Agree
Agree
Strongly
84%
78%
94%
72%
92%
78%
Cost and application process are
perceived barriers

Parents and non-traditional students are most
concerned about costs; parents are most concerned
about the application process
Parents
College Students
Non-Traditional
Students
Total
Agree
Agree
Strongly
Total
Agree
Agree
Strongly
Total
Agree
Agree
Strongly
College costs are
unaffordable for most
families
74%
53%
78%
38%
81%
55%
Applying for financial
aid for college is a
time consuming
process
77%
50%
73%
33%
56%
22%
Lack of knowledge re: costs is problem
for lower income or less educated parents

Less than half (46%) of all respondents feel informed
Income
Parent
Education
Race
Total
$28<$28K
$48K+
<48K
I believe that I
know how much it
costs to attend the
public colleges in
my state
46%
45%
45%
AA
51% 43%
Latino
Cauc
HS or 2-yr
Less Coll
53%
45%
40% 46%
4-yr
Coll
Grad
56%
Less awareness of Pell Grants among lower
income, Latino & less educated parents

A majority (77%) of all respondents are aware of Pell
Grants; Latinos notably unaware
Income
Race
Total
$28<$28K
$48K+
<48K
Parents who
are aware of
Pell Grants
77%
70%
80%
84%
AA
82%
Parent
Education
HS
Latino Cauc or
Less
44%
2-yr
Coll
4-yr
Coll
Grad
81% 62% 85%
91%
Student and Parent Reactions to
RSA Recommendations
RSA Recommendation #1
The study group recommends using tax information
directly from the Internal Revenue Service to
determine how much federal financial aid a student
will get, instead of requiring families to fill out the
FAFSA. The IRS would give information from the
family’s most recent tax return to the U.S.
Department of Education to figure out how much
federal financial aid a student would receive.
Use IRS Data Instead of FAFSA

74% of parents and about 90% of students support
recommendation; but students not “very” supportive
“I like the fact this eliminates the 'double work' we are asked to do for
FAFSA. There’s less paperwork, less work.”
Parents
College
Students
NonTraditional
Students
Total Supportive
74%
90%
87%
Very supportive
34%
19%
30%
Somewhat supportive
40%
71%
57%
Not very supportive
11%
8%
10%
Not at all supportive
15%
2%
3%
Use IRS Data Instead of FAFSA

Fewer “very supportive” ratings reflect concerns

Mistrust of IRS (mistakes, inefficiency, privacy)

Tax return can’t capture true picture of household finances

Household finances change year to year

Nontraditional households (e.g., divorced parents filing
separately)

Families who don’t file tax returns
Use IRS Data Instead of FAFSA

Respondents’ preference for status quo reflects
questions, concerns and fear of unknown
Parents
College
Students
Non-Traditional
Students
Would prefer to complete
the FAFSA to apply for
financial aid
66%
64%
67%
Would prefer to have the
IRS send tax data to the
USED
34%
36%
33%
Use IRS Data Instead of FAFSA

What would be very important in order to increase
support for using IRS data?
Parents
College
Students
NonTraditional
Students
Allowing households to give USED
updated financial information if
circumstances have changed since last
tax year
73%
71%
84%
Knowing that USED is subject to same
privacy rules as IRS
71%
63%
82%
Allowing families to review IRS
information before it is sent to USED
65%
55%
73%
RSA Recommendation #2
The federal government would increase the
amount students can borrow from the federal
student loan program to help them pay for
increasing college tuition costs and other
expenses.
Increase Maximum Annual Loan

Parents & non-traditional students most supportive of
recommendation
“This would help me finish school sooner because I wouldn’t have to get a
job or pay for the loans while in school. I would love to get more federal
loans so I don't have to use my credit card.”
Parents
College
Students
Non-Traditional
Students
Total Supportive
87%
89%
90%
Very supportive
53%
44%
52%
Somewhat supportive
34%
45%
38%
Not very supportive
7%
9%
7%
Not at all supportive
6%
3%
3%
RSA Recommendation #3
People who take out federal student loans
would not be asked to pay more than 15%
of their yearly net income (that is, income
after taxes) in loan payments. So, if a
borrower loses her job or experiences a
cut in salary, loan payments would be
reduced. After 20 years, any remaining
loan amount would be forgiven.
Protect Borrowers in Repayment

Parents and students support this recommendation; nontraditional students most supportive
“That would be a dream come true! Part of my hesitation with loans
now is the burden of them after I finish college. This would make
me much more comfortable taking out loans.”
Parents
College
Students
Non-Traditional
Students
Total Supportive
83%
83%
90%
Very supportive
52%
48%
67%
Somewhat supportive
31%
35%
23%
Not very supportive
9%
13%
8%
Not at all supportive
8%
4%
2%
Protect Borrowers in Repayment

Recommendation increases willingness to borrow
Parents
College
Students
Non-Traditional
Students
I think that people will be
more comfortable taking out
student loans to finance their
educations if this is passed.
82%
94%
93%
I think that 20 years is a fair
period of time during which
to have to make loan
payments.
80%
83%
90%
RSA Recommendation #4
The federal government would create and
contribute money to college savings accounts
for children from low and moderate income
families. Students would be able to use these
funds only for college, even if they decided to
go later in life. Unused savings would go
back to the government.
College Savings Accounts

Support is high, particularly among non-traditional students
“It’s like Social Security. You would get a statement telling you how much
money is in the account. I would show it to my kids and say, ‘see how much
money there is for college? You can go’.”
Parents
College
Students
Non-Traditional
Students
Total Supportive
77%
75%
81%
Very supportive
41%
37%
49%
Somewhat supportive
36%
39%
32%
Not very supportive
11%
15%
11%
Not at all supportive
12%
10%
8%
RSA Recommendation #5
All households who file tax returns would
receive information about how much Pell
Grant their children would get if they were in
college at that time. Families would also get
information about financial aid and tuition
costs in their state. This information would be
provided each year starting when the children
at home are young.
Early Information

Greatest overall support for this recommendation
“There is no downside to this. This is giving people more
information and hope and thoughts that they never had before.”
Parents
College
Students
Non-Traditional
Students
Total Supportive
89%
92%
93%
Very supportive
54%
49%
61%
Somewhat supportive
35%
43%
32%
Not very supportive
5%
7%
5%
Not at all supportive
6%
1%
2%
Early Information

Parents and students understand the benefits
Parents
College
Students
Non-Traditional
Students
Knowing the approximate Pell Grant amount that my
child could receive would make it easier for me to
plan for my children’s college
91%
--
--
Knowing the approximate Pell Grant amount that I
could receive would have made it easier for me to
prepare for my college
--
94%
93%
If I had known during my teenage years the
approximate Pell Grant amount I could have received,
I would have completed my education sooner
--
--
72%
88%
--
95%
87%
--
--
Having information about paying for college would
help (parents/me) encourage (their children/my
children) to think about going to college
I would be very interested in sharing the information
about Pell Grant awards and state financial aid with
my child/children
Early Information


Most supportive:

African-American and Latino parents and
college students

College students whose parents not educated
beyond high school
“Somewhat supportive” ratings may reflect
concerns about using IRS data to generate
annual early information report
In Their Own Words
“This definitely would have impacted my own preparation.
Neither of my parents went to college so they had no idea
what options were available for financial aid or what colleges
were best in our state.”
“Immigrant parents don’t know how much it costs here to go
to college. They need to see, very early, what the costs are.
This is the difference between dreaming and planning.”
Rethinking Student Aid:
A “Package” of Recommendations
The recommendations in their entirety are
more appealing than each individually
 Participants agree on the following impact if
proposals are implemented


It will be easier to apply for federal aid
 Families will have a framework for planning &
saving
 Borrowing will be less intimidating
 More will have hope that college is possible
College Board Taking Action

State Need-Based Grant Study


Five Ways Education Pays


Consumer-friendly information for students & parents
Early Information Pilot


Collaborating with 5 states to model impact of simplified
FAFSA & need analysis formula on budget and
distribution of need-based state grant
Working with one or more states to create structure,
content & medium for annual communication
Get Schooled College Affordability Challenge

Winner recently announced at Clinton Global Initiative U
Q & A: Submitting Questions
To submit a question:
Click on the Question Mark icon (?) on the floating
toolbar (as shown at the right).
This will open the Q&A window on your
system only.
Type your question into the small
dialog box and click the Send Button.
Q&A
icon
For More Information:
Read the Cracking the Student Aid Code
report at http://advocacy.collegeboard.org.
If you have questions, please email Kathleen
Little (klittle@collegeboard.org) or Anne
Sturtevant (asturtevant@collegeboard.org).
Next Learning to Lead Webinar:
Leadership, Access and Institutional
Mission – May 18, 1 p.m. EDT
Register at
http://advocacy.collegeboard.org/admissioncompletion/admissions-21st-century.