Many
prospective college students and their parents are unaware they could qualify
for federal financial aid, which may lead some to either take out bigger
private loans to fund their schooling or not enroll in higher education at all.
A recent
survey of 5,000 high school students and parents by Royall & Co., a
consulting firm for enrollment and fundraising management, found that many
respondents believed their household income was too high to obtain a Pell Grant
or low-interest federal loan. Even in the bottom income bracket ($60,000 or
less), 27% of students and 34% of parents didn’t think they could secure aid.
“In
contrast, according to an EAB (Royall’s parent company) analysis of National
Center for Education Statistics data, 84% of students with household incomes of
less than $60,000 received Pell Grants—and many more students in this income
bracket qualified for subsidized student loans,” a spokesperson for Royall said
in a release.
In
addition, the survey discovered that families in the lowest income bracket are
more reluctant to fill out the required Free Application for Federal Student
Aid (FAFSA). Many of these families also don’t realize how much time is needed
to process applications and end up submitting their forms too late to receive
monies before tuition and other costs, such as buying course materials and
school supplies, are due.
The full report is available from Royall.
