Dive Brief:
- A legislative hearing in New Jersey will focus on mandatory fees public colleges and universities charge studentson top of tuition that significantly increase the cost of attendance.
- The Record reports the state comptroller’s office released a report last week criticizing the lack of transparency behind three institutions’ “heavy reliance” on fees that cost students as much as $4,600 per year, or more than one-third of the total cost of attendance.
- While critics say fees allow colleges and universities to get around tuition caps, institutional leaders say they have little choice with state budget cuts and they only approve new fees in public meetings.
Dive Insight:
A number of candidates in the current election cycle have gotten on board with proposals for tuition-free college, but a major criticism from student advocates is that free tuition is far from free college. Fees factor into the total cost of education, as do unavoidable food, housing and transportation costs. A new report from The Century Foundation, using data from the Wisconsin HOPE Lab, highlights the unexpected costs that threaten low-income students with hunger, homelessness and dropping out. Researchers found institutions underestimate living expenses, limiting the amount of financial aid for which students are eligible and forcing them to make unfair choices about their health and their education.
