Dive Brief:
- Of $1.5 billion in GI Bill funds spent on tuition and fees in California since 2009, more than 40% went to schools that failed to meet minimum state financial aid standards at least once in the past four years, according to the Center for Investigative Reporting.
- Four of the allegedly substandard schools were University of Phoenix campuses, which took in $225 million. More than one-third of the substandard schools — 121 — have no academic accreditation.
- For the state, the California Student Aid Commission considers a graduation rate lower than 30% or a loan default rate of more than 15.5% as an indicator of a substandard education.
Dive Insight:
The Center for Investigative Reporting story lays out the big problem with the 2008 GI Bill, which pays the full cost of college for veterans, up to $19,000 per year. Namely, the minimum standards required of schools that receive other government-funded financial aid don’t apply to the GI Bill funds. The result: Veterans end up paying exorbitant tuition and fees for college degrees that are basically worthless. Nearly 2 out of every 3 GI Bill dollars go to for-profit colleges. Two examples of non-accredited schools that benefit: The Institute for Advanced Study of Human Sexuality in San Francisco and the Pacific Coast Horseshoeing School in Amador County.
