College enrollment rates have declined since 2008, but for low-income students, the drop is much more dramatic.
While overall enrollment rates have fallen by three percent, for high-school graduates from the bottom 20 percent of family income, enrollment rates have plummeted by 10 percent, according to a new analysis from The Washington Post.
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For social and economic advancement, higher education isn’t what it was for poor students a decade ago.
A sustained drop in enrollment of this magnitude hasn’t been seen among poor high-school graduates in four decades.
The Post noted, “Enrollment was dropping at the same time as federal and private grant aid was increasing and high school graduation rates were rising.” In other words, aid was going to middle- and high-income students, not the poorest students.
That could be a combination of factors. If students see high tuition prices, regardless of whether they’d pay the “sticker price,” it could discourage poor students from applying. While federal financial aid is need-based, which should in theory go toward poor students, the definition has been loosened for who qualifies as need-based.
Between 2004-2005 and 2014-2015, for instance, Pell Grant recipients increased by 55 percent. A decade ago, Pell Grant expenditures were $16.5 billion. Now, expenditures stands at $30.3 billion, according to the College Board. Though Pell Grants were created to assist poor students in funding their education, middle-class students may now qualify for the grants.
There’s also a debate over whether colleges school focus on need-based financial aid or merit-based aid. Need-based would favor low-income students, but there are criticisms that more need-based aid goes toward middle-income students, not the poor.
Another factor: poor students have lower graduation rates than richer students, regardless of cognitive ability or achievement. The higher education system caters to middle- and high-income students, and lack support systems for poor students. When low-income students are less likely to succeed, they decide to avoid the struggle and inevitable student loan debt, and forgo college.
Reforming financial aid won’t reverse the trend. For poorer students to succeed, the higher education system needs to address those issues head on before enrollment rates will recover.
