These tables show undergraduate Stafford loan borrowing rates and average Stafford loan amounts from 1989-90 to 2007-08, using data from six separate administrations of the National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS): NPSAS:90, NPSAS:93, NPSAS:96, NPSAS:2000, NPSAS:04, and NPSAS:08. The estimates that appear in these tables reflect the newly…

A growing body of empirical evidence shows that some financial aid programs increase college enrollment. Puzzlingly, there is little compelling evidence that Pell Grants and Stafford Loans, the primary federal student aid programs, are effective in achieving this goal. In this paper, we provide an in-depth review of this evidence, which taken as a…

The author asserts that current federal education policy and student aid programs effectively discriminate against older, part-time, low income students. She calls for changes aimed at achieving equity for adult, part-time learners when the Higher Education Act is considered for reauthorization. (SK)

The definition of the independent college student is discussed in hearings that are part of the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act. The importance of the definition has increased as the amount of federal dollars for student aid programs has declined or remained constant and the number of students requiring aid has increased. The current…

This book provides information to the student financial aid community about the calculation of a student's expected family contribution (EFC). An introduction which uses a question-and-answer format gives background information and guidance for using the proper formula to calculate a student's EFC. The following section provides narrative…

This report provides results from a Minnesota state survey designed to identify the characteristics of the students enrolled in Minnesota colleges and how their families are financing their education. Data are presented from survey responses of 5,347 undergraduate college students. Information is presented separately for dependent and independent…

Proposed levels of federal aid to college students and the national economic context are considered. Compared to fiscal year 1985 and 1986 budgets, the Reagan administration has requested $2.3 billion less in various financial aid programs. It has proposed legislation limiting federal grants, direct loans, or work study jobs to students from…

Data were gathered on the number of college students receiving food stamps as heads of households at six selected universities: Tampa, Wisconsin, North Texas State, Pennsylvania, San Francisco State, and Portland. The percent of full-time students from the selected schools receiving food stamps as heads of households in the project areas reviewed…

Reasons for the increasing numbers of independent college students are considered, with attention to the provision for independent students in the Basic Educational Opportunity Grant (Pell) program. The availability of grants to independent students may have two consequences: college students under age 22 with access to parental resources might…

The distribution of Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG) funds was investigated by the General Accounting Office. The SEOG program is a campus-based aid program that provides money to schools, which then distribute it to students. Attention was directed to the following concerns: the kinds of schools that receive SEOG funds, the…

During the spring of 1974 a series of seminars on student aid programs and student access was held in connection with the congressional hearings on Title IV of the Higher Education Act. This seminar report on four new concepts for facilitating student access seeks to communicate some of the critical issues and concerns raised by the participants…

Current federal definitions and proposed alternative definitions of financially independent students, and the effect of the definitions on the numbers and attributes of independent students, are reviewed. Current federal law defines financial aid applicants as financially independent of their parents if they meet three criteria (the "tri-form"…

A status report for the Basic Educational Opportunity Grant Program (Basic Grant Program) for the 1976-1977 academic year is presented. Information is provided on: applicants for the 1976-1977 year; program trends for academic years 1973-1974 through 1976-1977; the number of Basic Grant recipients and nonqualifying applicants for 1976-1977 by…

The definition of independent student that is used in determining eligibility for federal student financial aid is examined, along with potential compliance problems for independent students and differential treatment of independent and dependent students. Major factors for defining independence for students receiving federal financial aid are:…

College students are complaining that Congress has made it too difficult to demonstrate financial independence to qualify for federal financial aid. Legislation in 1992 tightened the policy on financial independence to prevent affluent students from cheating the system. Colleges are reluctant to step in for fear of state-conducted audits of…