Strategic enrollment management (SEM) initiatives benefit when SEM committees are inclusive and collaborative. When financial aid professionals are excluded, the risk that certain initiatives will fail increases, especially if those initiatives involve academic changes. Here, the authors explore the reasons financial aid offices and academic…

The Academic Competitiveness (AC) and National Science and Mathematics Access to Retain Talent (SMART) Grants were established by the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005. The grants provide merit-based financial aid to certain low-income college students eligible for Federal Pell Grants and are administered by the Department of Education (Education).…

Growing concerns about low awareness and take-up rates for government support programs like financial aid for college have recently spurred calls to simplify the application process and enhance visibility. However, little research has been done to determine whether such reforms would truly improve college access and in what form…

In an effort to provide more detailed information than had been provided by previous surveys of student satisfaction, the Office of Research and Planning at Nova Southeastern University used a localized survey to focus on a variety of task and process issues of importance to the Office of Student Financial Assistance. Surveys were mailed to 1,1050…

Drawing on results of a Florida project, it is argued that statewide evaluation of college student financial aid programs, involving institutional aid officers, system-level administrators, and others may promote change beneficial to students and administrators. Emphasis is on the role institutional aid administrators can play in such a…

The many changes that have taken place in the college student financial aid system in recent years have necessitated a series of operational and programmatic adjustments for financial aid administrators and their offices. Changes include increased aid availability, complexity of student circumstances, and regulation. Even greater program…

It is recommended that student financial aid administrators undertake more research to improve their knowledge and control of their programs, understand the effects of policies, and help correct beliefs and attitudes. Choosing a research topic, creating credibility, and writing a complete report are discussed. (MSE)

This study was conducted to determine how often federal financial aid recipients received aid that was greater than their federally defined need and what cost or other implications might result from changing the Higher Education Act (HEA) to limit such aid. Data came from the 1999-2000 National Postsecondary Student Aid Study for full-time,…

Explores common institutional strategies for pricing, awarding aid, and controlling the growth of aid budgets in light of changing recruitment practices. Concludes by discussing the new services that aid offices must provide to meet their new challenges effectively. Discusses net tuition revenue goals to enhance effective management of resources.…

It is suggested that well-designed and executed institutional research on the effects of student financial aid can help resolve ambiguities about policy and provide useful information for institutional financial planning. Models and methodologies for conducting such research using existing data sources are outlined. (Author/MSE)

Institutional researchers and student financial aid officers can collaborate to construct the longitudinal data files needed to study students persistence and recommend persistence policy. (Author/MSE)

Site visits to a sample of 173 colleges, universities, vocational-technical schools, and other postsecondary institutions--conducted to examine the procedures used to manage federal Basic Educational Opportunity Grant (BEOG) and campus-based student financial assistance programs--are summarized. This report deals only with the conduct of the…

Information on the Office of Scholarships and Student Financial Aid of the University of Delaware is presented, based on a 1979-80 program review for the Council on Program Evaluation (COPE). The office's location in the University of Delaware's organization, sources of funding for the office, its major goals and purposes, and past and future…

The need for efficient and effective systems to deliver financial assistance to students and to administer the Guaranteed Student Loan (GSL) program is assessed, and recommendations for improving delivery systems are provided. Attention is directed to the delivery of Pell Grant and campus-based assistance, the provision of information to current…

This report assesses the extent to which ineligible noncitizens receive postsecondary federal student financial assistance. The study focused on the following issues: (1) processes needed to ensure that ineligible noncitizens do not receive federal student aid under Title IV of the Higher Education Act, (2) the numbers of potentially ineligible…