College attendance has increased significantly over the last few decades, but dropout rates remain high, with fewer than half of all adults ultimately obtaining a postsecondary credential. This project investigates whether one-on-one college coaching improves college attendance and completion outcomes for former low- and middle-income income state…

Paying for college is often a family affair, with both parents and students contributing. We study the effects of college on family finances using administrative data on the universe of federal aid applicants in California linked to credit records. We provide the first comprehensive analysis of how both students and their parents use debt with…

Education and training after high school is critical for individual development and career advancement in Washington's innovative and evolving labor market. However, college enrollment and completion rates lag behind state goals and the national average. Washington has some of the most generous state financial aid opportunities in the country to…

Federal Student Aid is money from the Federal Government that helps you pay for college, career school, or graduate school expenses. Federal student aid is available through grants, work-study funds, and loans. Every student who meets certain eligibility requirements can get some type of federal student aid. This brief describes the types of aid…

I use rich administrative data and several quasi-experiments in Texas to study which students benefit most from college grant aid and why. For "extensive-margin" students, grant aid causes enrollment in college, and therefore has potentially large benefits relative to these students' no-college counterfactual. In contrast,…

College enrollment has increased over the years but so has the cost. The total cost of attending college -- including tuition, room and board, necessary books and supplies, and more -- would be prohibitive for most students if not for financial aid. Yet, many students still cite financial barriers as the top reason for opting out of college.…

Paying for college is often a family affair, with both parents and students contributing. We study the effects of college on family finances using administrative data on the universe of federal aid applicants in California linked to credit records. We provide the first comprehensive analysis of how both students and their parents use debt with…

Financial aid has helped millions of students pay for their education beyond high school. This document provides information about federal and Minnesota financial aid programs, including the following sections: (1) How do I apply for financial aid?; (2) Five basic steps to apply for financial aid; (3) What types of financial aid are available?;…

The U.S. Department of Education's three-month delay in launching the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form and the subsequent lack of continuous access, ambiguities in the form, and data reporting errors have resulted in a significant decline in form completions for 2024. The analysis in this report--a first-of-its kind study…

Going to college creates a financial challenge for an increasing number of American students. The inadequacy of available financial aid and lack of wrap-around services make the possibility of college graduation increasingly challenging for former McKinney-Vento students. The purpose of this study was to explore the financial, socioemotional, and…

This study examined how the culture in school counseling programs or departments shapes the college-related outcomes of high school students including students of color. With data from the High School Longitudinal Study 2009, we investigated two major steps in the college-going process: (a) whether students see the counselor for financial aid…

Merit aid is an increasingly important component of college scholarships, but policymakers are concerned that merit aid is often given to students who would enroll anyway. As a baseline we use a regression discontinuity (RD) framework to test an institution-level merit aid program at a public research university and find that the merit aid program…

The Postsecondary Pathways for Former Foster Care Youth (PP-FFCY) study is a research project that focuses on the transitions of foster care alums to and through postsecondary institutions. Through the Ofice of Community College Research and Leadership (OCCRL), the PP-FFCY project team is conducting a comprehensive needs assessment report that:…

This article uses a sample of 13,643 students attending a 4-year state university in Florida to estimate a selection-bias corrected quantile regression of loan debt at graduation. The study investigates whether the debt levels of students who received the Florida Bright Futures (FBF) scholarship are significantly different from the debt levels of…

This study explores high school families' understanding of college financing. The research examines what college-bound students and parents know about financial aid, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®), scholarships, and student loans. The report evaluates perceptions, exposes common misconceptions, and gauges how prepared high…