Largely because of high student loan default rates, much of the criticism of federal aid programs has focused on policies and practices affecting the participation of proprietary schools in federal student aid. This report reviews alternative indicators of school performance that are currently used or could be used by the federal student aid programs. These indicators are considered appropriate for assessing proprietary schools, but they are likely to be applicable to other types of postsecondary institutions. The use of student loan default rates to set minimum standards for program eligibility is limited and inadequate for assessing institutional quality. A more comprehensive indicator of default rates, particularly a default rate based on the proportion of dollars in default and the percentage of students receiving federal loans, would give a more complete picture. New information on factors influencing institutions likely to misuse the student aid program or to fail are needed to develop valid profiles to identify high-risk institutions. More comprehensive assessments should consider program completion rates, attainment of occupational competency by students, and labor market performance. Student background may become a factor in the assessment process. Specific guidelines are given for short-term measures to improve institutional evaluation while a more comprehensive assessment system is being developed. Six tables summarize information on indicators. Two appendices summarize meetings with representatives of proprietary schools and occupational competency testing in proprietary schools. (SLD)