Optimal Aid Policies: Beyond College Access

About 30-percent of students starting in a four-year public or private non-profit college fail to earn a bachelor’s degree within six years, with higher rates among students from disadvantaged backgrounds. Most of these students cite academic and financial reasons for not graduating. Economists Emily Cook, Chao Fu, and John R. Stromme will examine the extent to which financial aid policies affect college enrollment, in-college decisions (study effort, in-college work, borrowing), graduation, and labor market outcomes for students across in the income distribution. They will analyze data from ten surveys on the high school graduating class of 2004, including the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System and the 2004 National Postsecondary Student Aid Study for their study.