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Distance Learning Growing, Primarily Among Non-Traditional Students

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The U.S. Department of Education’s Stats in Brief report for October 2011 presents updated NCES  based research on the types of students engaging in distance learning (defined now as online, or live and interactive video/audio instruction through CD/DVD or webcast), and changes in distance learning over time. Distance education degree programs are those that utilize such classes exclusively.

The report found that, between 2000 and 2008, the percentage of undergraduate students enrolled in at least one distance education course increased from 8 percent to 20 percent, and enrollment in distance education degree programs doubled, from 2 percent of all undergraduates to 4 percent. Other interesting findings included:

  • Computer Science and Business majors have the highest rates of enrollment in distance education courses (27 percent and 24 percent vs. 20 percent, on average) and in distance degree programs (8 percent and 6 percent vs. 4 percent, on average). General studies, education and health care majors also have higher levels of enrollment in distance learning, while math, natural sciences, agriculture and humanities students are least likely to enroll.
  • Participation in distance education courses is highest for students in associate’s degree programs (25 percent), followed by bachelor’s (17 percent) and certificate programs (13 percent).
  • 12 percent of students attending for-profit schools were enrolled in distance education degree programs, compared to 3 percent of undergraduates at other types of institutions.
  • Nontraditional students are most likely to participate in distance learning: 56 percent of students 24 and older took distance education courses compared to 15 percent of students age 23 or younger, and 55 percent of students in distance education degree programs had at least one dependent. Furthermore, 62 percent of students in distance degree programs work full time.

More about this study is available in the full report.

A New Measure for College Success?

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Education Sector, an education policy think tank, recently released a report entitled “Debt to Degree,” which measures the ratio of student and parent, government-backed loans taken by students to the number of credentials awarded by an institution per year.  Based on this, the report concludes that:

  • Across all institutions and sectors, for each degree awarded in 2008/2009, $18,102 was borrowed
  • Degree to credential ratios varied considerably across institution types:  On average, families at four-year public institutions borrowed $16,247 per degree, compared to $21,827 at private four-years, and $43,383 at for-profit schools
  • Among elite research universities, Princeton, with its no-loan financial aid policy, had the lowest debt to credential ratio ($2,385), while NYU had the highest ratio ($25,886), due to its small endowment and less wealthy student body
  • Washington state has one of the lowest borrowing to credential ratios in the nation, with debt to degree ratios in the $5,000 to $9,999 range

Note that the study excluded private loans and Perkins loans, which some argue might mask even larger debt burdens, particularly at for-profit schools where institutional financial aid is limited. To read more about the study, including its limitations, check out the Chronicle’s and Inside Higher Ed’s articles.

Low Debt to Income Ratio for College Grads in WA

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Kiplinger has released a map showing average student debt versus average income across all fifty states, as well as categorizing institutions they have identified as the most expensive and the ‘best values’.  The UW comes in as the 10th best value public institution in the nation for 2010-11.

The map illustrates that Washington state students have a relatively low debt to income ratio: Average student debt is between $15,000 and $20,000, while average income is around $40,000 to $50,000, with about 61 percent of all students in the state taking out loans. Utah boasts the smallest amount of debt per student (under $15,000), while New Hampshire has the highest average debt load (over $25,000 per student).

These state level data are consistent with our most recent UW data. In 2009-10, 50 percent of all UW undergraduates borrowed and their average cumulative debt was $19,500. Although these figures are lower than the national average, they have increased over the last several years, especially as state funding cuts have necessitated tuition increases. This is why the UW Board of Regents voted to substantially increase the UW’s commitment to financial aid for resident undergraduate students starting this fall.

Note that Kiplinger also shows that students appear to be increasing their use of credit cards while in college, with 84 percent of students holding at least one credit card and half of all students holding four or more. The mean credit card balance was a record $3,173.

PELL Grant Program Left Intact For Now.

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If the US House and Senate approve the debt deal that the Obama Administration and Congressional leaders seem to have worked out over the weekend, the Pell Grant Program will remain intact. Although PELL had been targeted for significant cuts, the deal leaves the current maximum grant at $5,550, and retains the in-school interest subsidy for graduate student loans.

Note that future cuts are still possible, especially if the number of eligible students continues to grow, increasing significantly the cost of the program. But, for now, the bipartisan support to leave the program largely untouched is encouraging. Make sure to follow frequent updates on the debt deal, federal budget negotiations and other relevant federal activity on the UW Office of Federal Relations blog.

Spending on Financial Aid Increases in Most States

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The National Association of State Student Grant and Aid Programs (NASSGAP) has published their Annual Survey Report on State-Sponsored Student Financial Aid.

The new report, based on 2009-10 survey data, shows that while state support for institutions has fallen rapidly for several years, many states have increased their commitment to students via financial aid. On average, state spending on financial aid increased 3.8 percent between 2008-09 and 2009-10. For many states, increases in financial aid were necessary to help maintain student access as steep budget cuts for institutions necessitated significant increases in tuition.

Note that the survey does not contextualize increases in spending on financial aid with tuition increases, nor does it specifically address changes in financial need for students during the Great Recession. Inside Higher Ed addresses some of these issues in their report on the survey.

The survey also shows that while most state spending on financial aid continues to be in the form of need-based grants ($8.9 of $10.8 billion was spent in the form of grants), state spending on merit-based or mixed merit and need based financial aid programs continues to increase. The survey shows that 47 percent of all state aid to undergraduates is need-based, while 18 percent is merit-based, and 35 percent is tied to programs with both need and merit-based components.

UC Likely to Raise Tuition Again

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Having already increased tuition by 8 percent for the upcoming academic year, UC Regents are expected to consider an additional 10 percent increase due to the Governor’s failure to win extension of various temporary tax measures in California. As a result, the overall cut to the University of California has been increased from $500 million to $650 million (equaling a 21 percent cut in state funding for UC), which is expected to increase further if an agreement on revenue measures is not reached.

The latest talk of another tuition increase for resident students comes as the UC system has been increasing nonresident enrollment to help make up for state funding cuts.

Sixth Circuit Finds MI Affirmative Action Ban Unconstitutional

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On July 2nd, the US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit ruled that the state affirmative action ban, which was passed as ‘Proposal 2’ by Michigan voters in 2006, is unconstitutional because it violates the equal protection clause of the 14th amendment to the US Constitution.

While Washington State is not under the jurisdiction of the Sixth Circuit, the decision may have future bearing as Washington is one of seven states where voters have passed similar affirmative action bans in government hiring and university admissions, including:

  • California in 1996
  • Texas in 1996
  • Washington in 1998
  • Florida in 1999
  • Michigan in 2006
  • Nebraska in 2008
  • Arizona in 2010

The legal challenge in Michigan focused on the ban of the use of race or ethnicity in college admissions. The three person panel ruled 2 to 1 that banning the use of race/ethnicity in college admissions qualifies as an unconstitutional alteration of the political structure because it places a larger burden on minorities, who would have to rely on Michigan voters to reinstate race as an admissions criterion, compared to other groups who would only have to lobby the University Regents and administration to enact or maintain preferential admissions treatment based on non-academic factors (e.g. geography, a specific talent, legacy status, etc.)

Michigan’s Attorney General will request a rehearing by the full panel of Sixth Circuit judges, and, if they hold up the decision, he will appeal to the US Supreme Court, which has changed substantially in composition since the 1982 case involving mandatory school busing in Seattle on which this opinion was heavily based.

Harkin Holds What Could be Last Senate Hearing on For-Profits

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Days after the Department of Education released its finalized Gainful Employment rule, Senator Tom Harkin held his fifth Senate hearing investigating the practices of the for-profit higher education industry. Senator Harkin focused the hearing on the high levels of student borrowing and outsized loan default rates for students at for-profit institutions. Previous hearings and reports have revealed that:

  • Less than 10% of postsecondary students are enrolled in for-profits, yet they receive 23% of federal aid, and account for 44% of all loan defaults.
  • 95% of all students at for-profits borrow money to attend, compared to less than a quarter of community college students, 64% of students at public four year institutions, and 72% at private four year institutions.

Additionally, Harkin grilled Department of Education Under Secretary Martha Kanter on whether the softened gainful employment rule released by the Department would do enough to help reign in exploitative practices of the for-profit higher education industry, noting that stock prices in the industry increased significantly upon publication of the revised rule whereas previous iterations had sent prices down. Kanter, who was attending in place of Secretary Arne Duncan, defended the regulation as a step forward.

Harkin concluded that while the Department of Education regulations were ‘better than nothing’, he continues to believe that Congressional action via legislation may be necessary.

No Republican members of the committee were present, and no further hearings on the topic are scheduled at this time.

For previous OPBlog posts on this topic see:

Importance of Need-Based Aid for Achieving Attainment Goals

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A recent Pell Institute Report proposed a new way to think about reaching President Obama’s goal of increasing the proportion of adults with a college degree to 60 percent by 2020. The Institute suggests that income inequality creates a two-tier educational system in which 25-34 year-olds in the top half of the income distribution have degree attainment rates of 58.8 percent, while individuals in the bottom half of the income distribution exhibit attainment rates of 12 percent. The Pell Institute claims that, by focusing on funding and supporting disadvantaged students, higher education can make progress towards achieving President Obama’s goal.  Specifically, the Institute recommends:

  • Improving access to four-year institutions for disadvantaged students
  • Provide data, disaggregated by family income or Pell receipt status, more readily and widely
  • Focus on changing the eligibility requirements for the Pell grant (such as GPA in high school or increased credit hour requirements), instead of cutting the maximum Pell amount
  • Bolster programs like TRIO and GEAR UP that support students academically and improve retention rates

The University of Washington’s commitment to disadvantaged students, through Husky Promise and other forms of need-based aid, are key institutional efforts to provide access to quality higher education for low-income students. In light of potential double digit tuition increases for resident undergraduate students in 2011-12, Husky Promise, as well as the State Need Grant and federal Pell Grant are critical programs for our students.

Open, Accessible Courseware Issue Gains Ground

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In an effort to lower instructional costs and increase the quality of class materials in community colleges, President Obama has started a program to promote the creation and use of open educational resources (OERs). OERs are defined as “high-quality” educational materials, such as books, lectures, exams, study guides, and syllabi, which are published under a Creative Commons license and can be freely accessed on the Web. The material can be presented as an entire course, or it can be broken up into individual lessons or tutorials.

The Department of Education has hired Hal Plotkin, a prominent journalist and community college trustee, to expand the prevalence and recognition of OERs worldwide with $2 billion of government funds.

MIT and Carnegie-Mellon each pioneered open courseware programs a decade ago, in order to make their educational materials more accessible to those outside the university. Since then, new services like Khan Academy, a tutorial website, and iTunes U, a collection of free lectures from prestigious institutions, have steadily gained recognition and importance.

Plotkin hopes that the additional funding for OERs will help community colleges offer courses and class materials at a lower cost and improve accessibility for non-traditional students. Federal support for OERs also focuses resources and attention on an e-learning system infrastructure. Plotkin intends to continue the growth and recognition of OERs in order to benefit thousands of interested learners.

The OER movement is gaining ground in Washington State, as well. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation recently awarded Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges more than $6 million dollars to launch the Washington State Student Completion Initiative. Part of this money will go towards creating an Open Course Library of over 80 high-demand introductory courses at Washington community and technical colleges intended to reduce educational materials costs and encourage free access to common course packs, online lectures, and library materials.

To read more about OERs and the specific program Plotkin manages, check out the Kevin Carey’s summary of the new policy and Plotkin’s own guidebook called “Free to Learn.”