In 2016 Chile initiated a policy of free tuition for students from families in the lower half of the income distribution to improve access to and completion of higher education. The empirical effectiveness of the policy has not yet been completely demonstrated. This study analysed the difference in levels of academic performance of students…

This case study uses the theory of academic capitalism (TAC) to explore how a public university known primarily for undergraduate education is incorporating market-oriented practices and structures, and how those changes could impact its curriculum and enrollment profile. Through initiatives to establish an engineering college, expand graduate…

Impacts to postsecondary institutions' enrollment and financial positions that resulted from the COVID-19 pandemic were examined in this study. Taking a quantitative observational approach, enrollment trends as they relate to changes in tuition and fee revenue, unrestricted cash on hand, and unrestricted investments held are analyzed to determine…

This research study examined the experiences of nontraditional community college students attending through a tuition-free grant. The intent of the study was to explore the student identified barriers to degree persistence and the student support services nontraditional students recognize as being beneficial towards their academic journey. This…

Under Utah House Bill 144, some unauthorized immigrant (UI) students who attend a Utah high school are exempt from paying the non-resident cost of tuition at Utah higher education institutions. This analysis examines awards earned by undergraduates who were eligible for the HB144 waiver: UI students who attended high school in Utah. Completion…

This report provides comprehensive data about the tuition and fee prices published by public higher education institutions in the West for academic year (AY) 2024-25, including changes in tuition and fee rates over the past one-, five-, and 10-year periods. For the first time, the report includes tuition and fees from each of the U.S. Pacific…

The study addresses the widening income and racial access gap in higher education resulting from enrollment management teams' operationalization of academic capitalism. The study focuses on the local, micro level, emphasizing how enrollment management leadership teams make sense of enrollment management, recognizing that enrollment management and…

Skills training offers a promising route to higher-paying jobs and career growth, especially in industries with a demand for skilled workers, such as healthcare, information technology, and advanced manufacturing. However, individuals with low incomes may find it difficult to access skills training programs due to financial barriers, the limited…

In 2010, Congress reauthorized the Post-9/11 GI Bill by changing reimbursement rates from by-state maximums to a nationwide limit. This policy created exogenous variation in financial aid for veterans at private universities. We detect changes in tuition only for for-profit colleges, where we estimate a 1 percent pass-through rate. This response…

Changes in government policy and funding structures, alongside a rapidly evolving (international) market for education have made education provision a key revenue driver for UK higher education institutions. In this setting, the Russell Group of Universities (RGU), a self-selected association of elite, research-intensive universities and Business…

This study focuses on tuition reset policies, where colleges reduce the published sticker price by at least 5%, and in many instances, much more. We use a difference-in-differences design to examine the effect of these policies on student enrollment disaggregated by race/ethnicity and a proxy for economic disadvantage. On average, these policies…

Community college baccalaureates (CCBs) provide an affordable pathway to baccalaureate-level education but increasing tuition rates present a potential financial barrier for students. Institutional aid as a cost-constraining mechanism has historically been less utilized in the 2-year sector when compared to traditional 4-year institutions. Yet,…

"Free college" programs are widespread in American higher education. They are discussed as addressing college access, affordability, inequality, and skills shortages. Many are last-dollar tuition guarantees restricted to use at single community colleges. Using student-level data spanning the transition to college, we investigate how two…

With tuition increasing at a faster rate than inflation, many college students depend on grants to access education. The largest of these, the federally funded Pell Grant, subsidizes over 30 billion a year worth of tuition for eligible students (Cardona, 2023) yet no longer meets its goal of covering 75% percent of tuition costs. While the…

How does a policy of free tuition affect student applications to universities? This article assesses how free tuition influences applications in terms of the selectivity of the university, length of the degree program, cost of the program, and application to a program in the STEM field. The study based on a quasi-experimental design was carried…