Most-clicked story of the week:
The tuition discount rate for first-time undergraduates is projected to reach 57.1% at private nonprofit colleges in the current academic year, according to the latest data from the National Association of College and University Business Officers. That’s up from 54.5% the year before and the highest point in the past decade, as colleges face declining net tuition revenue after inflation.
Number of the week: 15.5 million
That’s how many undergraduate students enrolled in college for the spring term, a 1.3% increase from last year, according to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. Graduate enrollment, however, held roughly flat at 3.1 million students, with declines in master’s programs and among international students.
House Republicans take aim at subsidized loans
- On Thursday, Republicans on the House’s Appropriations Committee proposed a fiscal 2027 education budget that would shore up Pell Grant funding, ultimately increasing the total maximum award by $50 to $7,445.
- The budget proposal also contains a measure, left out of the official summary, that would eliminate federal subsidized loans for undergraduate students.
- Several higher ed advocates spoke out against the measure. One of them, National College Attainment Network CEO Kim Cook, said in a statement, “We are grateful to see continued progress in keeping up with the funding needs of Pell, but you can't help students afford college by taking away the loans they need to stay enrolled.”
DOJ keeps up attacks on DEI and programs for undocumented students
- The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating 15 unnamed medical schools over their admissions practices, the agency said Thursday. Last month, DOJ alleged that Yale University and the University of California, Los Angeles had violated civil rights law by giving Black and Hispanic applicants an advantage in medical school admissions.
- On Wednesday, DOJ announced a probe targeting Arizona State University’s diversity, equity and inclusion work. The agency cited unspecified “viral videos” that it alleged showed ASU denying "equal treatment to students based on race, color, or national origin.”
- In what’s becoming a familiar playbook in conservative states, the DOJ teamed up with Nebraska’s attorney general to secure a court order last week striking down the state’s two-decade-old law allowing certain undocumented students to pay in-state tuition rates at public colleges.
Quote of the week:
"You need to confront the brutal facts — don’t budget off your hopes. This is also a time when I think it’s a mistake to be too conservative in the kinds of changes that you’re considering implementing."
Harrison Keller
University of North Texas President
In a conversation with Higher Ed Dive, Keller offered advice for college leaders confronting financial challenges. UNT has moved to cut over 70 low-enrolling academic programs and plans a major organizational restructuring as it wrestles with a $35 million budget gap, down from $45 million in February.
