Community college students must navigate complex financial aid policies and procedures to obtain their aid award. In this study, I investigated how Students of Color at a community college experience financial aid disbursements. Through qualitative interviews, I found that community colleges disburse aid to students through a process I define as…

Public higher education institutions in developing countries have faced a steady increase in student enrolment, driven by historical factors such as the expansion of access to education following the end of apartheid in South Africa and other policies aimed at addressing socio-economic inequalities. This increase, however, has led to challenges in…

This dissertation is comprised of two chapters regarding the economics of post-secondary education. The first concerns effects of peer gender: Large gender differences exist in the take-up and completion of college majors across academic fields. The degree of gender concentration within fields tends to increase over time spent in college. In this…

Congress has provided authority to the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) to fund off-duty voluntary education for Active and Reserve Component servicemembers. Congress and DOD have conceived of tuition assistance (TA) as a quality-of-life benefit, force-shaping tool, and a mechanism for developing human capital in the Armed Forces. The TA program,…

The new Lifelong Loan Entitlement (LLE), due to start in 2025, is a major and positive improvement to how the student support system in England enables lifelong participation in higher education. It also has the prospect of commanding cross-party support, at least in broad design if not in the detail. However, in this timely Policy Note, Rose…

The coronavirus pandemic brought unprecedented challenges to higher education, intensifying long-standing systemic inequities in college affordability and access. For many students, the total cost of attendance exceeds what they can afford, even with financial aid. The Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) provided a crucial financial…

The objective of the report was to determine whether the University of Cincinnati used the Student Aid (Assistance Listing Number (ALN) 84.425E) and Institutional (ALN 84.425F) portions of its Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) funds for allowable and intended purposes. It also reviews the University's cash management practices and the…

On January 20, the Biden Administration announced additional funding and resources to support students during the COVID-19 pandemic, which has created and exacerbated barriers to postsecondary success. Alongside this funding announcement, the Department of Education released updated guidance for institutions on using Higher Education Emergency…

For 25 years, the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA) has surveyed financial aid professionals to understand the environment in which they administer student aid. These surveys identify resource shortages that may hinder the delivery of financial aid services, explore the causes of these shortages, and assess the…

In response to the significant and still growing number of college students experiencing homelessness and housing insecurity in California, the State Legislature appropriated $9 million in the 2019-2020 State Budget for ongoing funding to provide housing services to students. Per section 9795 of the statute, colleges, in partnership with local…

The pandemic created daunting challenges for higher education. The federal government provided California Community Colleges billions of dollars in aid for students and institutions. How did they use these funds? How well did their pandemic recovery activities and investments help reengage students? What will institutions do when the money runs…

In March 2020, Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, an economic stimulus package designed to address the nationwide economic crisis created by the global COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to providing payments to individuals, business loans, and support to state and local governments, the CARES Act…

Pursuant to Education Code EDC 78080-78084, the California Community Colleges Chancellor's Office is pleased to provide the 2025 Hire UP Program Legislative Report. The Hire UP Pilot Program, established in 2022, aims to provide financial support and workforce integration for vulnerable student populations, including formerly incarcerated…

Community colleges were on the long list of beneficiaries when the federal government in March passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. Given the length of the list, however, the money only stretched so far, and two-year colleges have been creative and judicious about how they spent their allocations. To begin with,…

Most Americans today need some education beyond high school to secure a well-paying job, and higher education is a key factor in social and economic mobility. But higher education is not accessible to all students. To further equalize opportunity, states must understand options for improving the way they fund higher education. America's public…