Does Financial Aid Affect Tuition?
Abstract
This paper analyzes the impact of financial aid at the federal, state and local levels on public college and university tuition fees using data from the College Board. My analysis uses state level observations to measure levels of financial aid in the United States from 2005-2013 to measure the impact on tuition. I used fixed effects for states to control for differences between states. Previous literature suggests conflicting findings. I found that state level aid brought tuition down, but could be explained by tuition setting regulations on public college and universities or from historical events such as the Great Recession which is included in my data time period. A state having a merit based state level aid program and the cost of living were also statistically significant factors in increasing tuition. As more and more students enroll in colleges and universities and politicians such as Bernie Sanders running on a platform of free education, it is important to measure what affects tuition prices.
Session Name:
Education Policy Panel
Start Date
22-4-2016 9:00 AM
End Date
22-4-2016 10:00 AM
Location
HSB 201
Does Financial Aid Affect Tuition?
HSB 201
This paper analyzes the impact of financial aid at the federal, state and local levels on public college and university tuition fees using data from the College Board. My analysis uses state level observations to measure levels of financial aid in the United States from 2005-2013 to measure the impact on tuition. I used fixed effects for states to control for differences between states. Previous literature suggests conflicting findings. I found that state level aid brought tuition down, but could be explained by tuition setting regulations on public college and universities or from historical events such as the Great Recession which is included in my data time period. A state having a merit based state level aid program and the cost of living were also statistically significant factors in increasing tuition. As more and more students enroll in colleges and universities and politicians such as Bernie Sanders running on a platform of free education, it is important to measure what affects tuition prices.