How do students interpret the value of for-profit colleges?
You may be surprised. Tressie McMillan Cottom — author of Lower Ed — certainly was.
While the high cost of attending for-profit schools automatically triggers concerns about debt and default for many college counselors, price is often viewed in an entirely different light by students.
“I was stunned to learn that students used high price to indicate institutional quality,” she tweeted during a Monday #NACACreads discussion of her book. “That alone subverts almost everything we know!”
How do social inequalities shape access to education, and what can counselors and admission professionals do to help students navigate an increasingly complex array of postsecondary choices?
Author Tressie McMillan Cottom will participate in the hour-long discussion, and there will be plenty of opportunities for you to share your own thoughts about the book, as well as for-profit colleges.
The IRS Data Retrieval Tool (DRT) is now available to student loan holders applying for an income-driven repayment plan, the Department of Education announced last week.
According to a press release, “new encryption protections” have been added to the tool. However, the DRT will remain out-of-service for FAFSA filers until Oct. 1.
Although most American degree holders believe they received a quality education, more than a quarter say they would attend a different college if they had it all to do over, a new national poll shows.
A survey of 89,492 US adults by Gallup and the Strada Education Network found that 28 percent of respondents wish they would have selected a different institution. And given the chance, 36 percent would have chosen a different major.
A group of private schools wants to remove letter grades from the college admission process.
Instead, members of the newly formed Mastery Transcript Consortium (MTC) would submit reports to universities outlining how well students demonstrate mastery of key academic concepts. Other qualities, such as creativity and persistence, could also be highlighted on the new transcript.
The model is inspired in part by competency-based education, a method where students progress through the curriculum based on their demonstration of knowledge and skills, rather than seat time. Consortium leaders say each member will have the freedom to determine which “performance areas” will be included on their school’s transcript.
There are more than 17,000 US students pursuing college degrees in the UK, a number which has grown by 17 percent since 2009.
Many are attracted by the possibility of broadening their international experience without struggling with a language barrier. Others relish the chance of learning at world-famous institutions older than the United States itself.
The conversation will kick off at 2 p.m. ET on Twitter, and we’d love to have you join the chat!
Author Tressie McMillan Cottom will participate in the hour-long discussion, and there will be plenty of opportunities for you to share your own thoughts about the book, as well as for-profit colleges.
I just completed my 19th year as director of college counseling at Kents Hill School in Maine, 15 years of which also included building and directing its international program. As I close this chapter and begin my next as director of academic advising and college counseling at The American School in London, I am awed at the rapidly changing landscape of international students in the US, particularly at our high schools, and the dire need for more professional development on both the secondary school and college side in support of this growing population of students.
Editor’s note: A version of this post originally appeared on Admitted in May 2015. It’s being republished as part of NACAC’s Best of the Blog series.
It has become customary for many schools to publish a list of college decisions each May. The Ellis School, where I work, is no exception. Our students are so bright and involved and — with 30 students accepted to more than 80 colleges and counting — every girl has excellent options.
But after more than 13 years in the college admission field, I have come to understand that, no matter how impressive, a college list alone does not convey what is truly important and meaningful about a young person’s college admission story. What matters most are the truths they discover about themselves during the process.
