AICUP Message to Friends of Independent Higher Education
October 3, 2011
Net Price Calculator--Time is Running Out!
Each postsecondary institution that participates in Title IV federal student aid programs must post a net price calculator on its website in accordance with the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 (HEOA). The calculator must be posted by October 29, 2011. This calculator uses institutional data to determine an estimated net price of attendance for current and prospective students and their families based on an individual student’s circumstances. It is required for all institutions that enroll first time, full time degree /certificate seeking students.
Institutions can meet this requirement by using the U.S. Department of Education’s calculator –see NetPrice Calculator or by developing their own customized calculator that includes at a minimum the same elements as the U.S.D.E. calculator.
There are two major components of the template for the calculator. In the first component, institutions input the following:
· Price of attendance
· Median amounts of grant and scholarship aid awarded to the student by Estimated Family Contribution (EFC) range
In the second component, users are asked questions to determine:
· Their dependency status
· Their estimated cost of attendance
· Approximated EFC
After entering the data, the prospective student can view a table to identify a median EFC which is then matched with median grant and scholarship aid (entered by the institution) to provide the student’s estimated grant aid which is then subtracted from the estimated price of attendance to provide the net price. More detailed information is available on the IPEDS website at:
Potential unintended negative consequences could occur for colleges and universities after the public begins to use these net price calculators if individuals believe their “actual” aid awards don’t meet the “estimates” of the net price calculator. This will probably cause many colleges to be very conservative in estimating aid so that potential students won’t be disappointed later. Estimating aid is also difficult at smaller, private colleges because individual talents or other characteristics are taken into account by the institution, and these features are hard to obtain through an internet form. However, the net price calculator has the potential to alert more potential students and their families to just how affordable private colleges can be.
Did you know? The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, HHS, and Education released its FY 2012 budget proposal late last week. Like their colleagues in the Senate, they preserve the maximum Pell at $5,500. While the Senate pays for preserving the maximum by cutting the interest subsidy for undergraduates for the 6 months after graduation, the House pays for it by reducing Pell eligibility for less than half-time students and for students who take more than 6 years to graduate. These were among some of the suggestions that AICUP members made to members of the Pennsylvania Congressional delegation earlier this summer. The final numbers are still to be negotiated by the House and Senate leaders, but this is a good start in the process.
Mary Young, Ph.D.
Vice President for Government Relations
AICUP
101 North Front Street
Harrisburg, Pa. 17101
717-232-8649 Ext. 227
AICUP Message to Friends of Independent Higher Education
October 3, 2011
Net Price Calculator--Time is Running Out!
Each postsecondary institution that participates in Title IV federal student aid programs must post a net price calculator on its website in accordance with the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 (HEOA). The calculator must be posted by October 29, 2011. This calculator uses institutional data to determine an estimated net price of attendance for current and prospective students and their families based on an individual student’s circumstances. It is required for all institutions that enroll first time, full time degree /certificate seeking students.
Institutions can meet this requirement by using the U.S. Department of Education’s calculator –see NetPrice Calculator or by developing their own customized calculator that includes at a minimum the same elements as the U.S.D.E. calculator.
There are two major components of the template for the calculator. In the first component, institutions input the following:
· Price of attendance
· Median amounts of grant and scholarship aid awarded to the student by Estimated Family Contribution (EFC) range
In the second component, users are asked questions to determine:
· Their dependency status
· Their estimated cost of attendance
· Approximated EFC
After entering the data, the prospective student can view a table to identify a median EFC which is then matched with median grant and scholarship aid (entered by the institution) to provide the student’s estimated grant aid which is then subtracted from the estimated price of attendance to provide the net price. More detailed information is available on the IPEDS website at:
Potential unintended negative consequences could occur for colleges and universities after the public begins to use these net price calculators if individuals believe their “actual” aid awards don’t meet the “estimates” of the net price calculator. This will probably cause many colleges to be very conservative in estimating aid so that potential students won’t be disappointed later. Estimating aid is also difficult at smaller, private colleges because individual talents or other characteristics are taken into account by the institution, and these features are hard to obtain through an internet form. However, the net price calculator has the potential to alert more potential students and their families to just how affordable private colleges can be.
Did you know? The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, HHS, and Education released its FY 2012 budget proposal late last week. Like their colleagues in the Senate, they preserve the maximum Pell at $5,500. While the Senate pays for preserving the maximum by cutting the interest subsidy for undergraduates for the 6 months after graduation, the House pays for it by reducing Pell eligibility for less than half-time students and for students who take more than 6 years to graduate. These were among some of the suggestions that AICUP members made to members of the Pennsylvania Congressional delegation earlier this summer. The final numbers are still to be negotiated by the House and Senate leaders, but this is a good start in the process.
Mary Young, Ph.D.
Vice President for Government Relations
AICUP
101 North Front Street
Harrisburg, Pa. 17101
717-232-8649 Ext. 227