According to a new study, many four-year colleges fail to meet federal standards for disclosing costs on their websites, Inside Higher Ed reported.
The 2008 Higher Education Act reauthorization included a provision that requires institutions to make disclosures on their websites about the actual cost of attendance, displaying tools called net price calculators to show students total costs after subtracting grant and scholarships and factoring in students' family incomes.
The study, conducted by the Alliance for Higher Education and Democracy at the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education, found that many schools provide misleading, incomplete or inaccurate cost estimates. A third of colleges did not prominently display the correct net price. Two-thirds of colleges used data that was either out of date or failed to specify the academic year. Others ignored costs for books and supplies, transportation and living expenses, or asked students to estimate their own costs, suggesting that students can reduce costs by "spending conservatively," according to the study.
The study comes a day after a trio of lawmakers introduced bipartisan legislation aimed at improving Net Price Calculators by making them easier to find and use, Politico reported.
The Net Price Calculator Improvement Act would require institutions to display prominently on their websites the costs of tuition, room and board, and other expenses. The bill would also authorize the Education Department to develop a "universal calculator" to compare individualized estimates of their net price across multiple colleges at one time.
The measure was filed by U.S. Senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Tina Smith (D-MN), along with Joni Ernst (R-IA). Representatives Elijah E. Cummings (D-MD) and Brett Guthrie (R-KY) introduced companion legislation in the House.
Related Links
Inside Higher Ed
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2019/03/28/colleges-fall-short-price-disclosures-study-finds
Politico
https://www.politico.com/newsletters/morning-education/2019/03/28/devos-back-on-the-hill-amid-special-olympics-maelstrom-560585