COLLEGE SCORECARD UPDATES
On February 7, the Department released updates to the College Scorecard that make the interactive tool more useful for students and families weighing college options. The tool also features new and revised information that may be beneficial to school counselors, college access providers, researchers, and other critical stakeholders. These updates include restoring metrics that help compare institutions’ costs, graduation rates, post-college earnings, and more (press release, Secretary’s tweet, and Department’s tweet).
“For so many students and families, the college search process can be overwhelming. But easily accessible, high-quality information about higher education institutions can help students determine which college or university is the best fit for them,” Secretary Cardona noted. “The updated and enhanced College Scorecard shines a spotlight on affordability, inclusivity, and outcomes, over exclusivity and colleges that leave students without good jobs and with mountains of debt. This update reflects the Biden Administration’s commitment to ensuring students remain at the heart of the Department’s work.”
Among the updates is a refresh of the cumulative loan debt of borrowers at both the institution level and the field of study within each institution, as well as federal student loan repayment rates for institutions.
Also, for the first time since 2018, the Department is publishing institution-level earnings data, providing an overall sense of the career outcomes for alumni, and additional information about graduates who are better off having gone to college, by showing the percentage of those earning more than the typical worker with only a high school diploma.
The College Scorecard includes many examples of institutions that are inclusive and serve students well, closing gaps in the completion rates among students of color compared with white students and ensuring programs lead to positive career outcomes with manageable levels of debt. For example, the University of Baltimore, a predominantly black institution in Maryland, charges much lower tuition rates than most four-year institutions and has median post-college earnings of more than $58,000. As another example, Valenica College, a community college in Florida with three in four undergraduate students of color, has narrowed its completion rate gap; currently, 45% of white students and 41% of Hispanic students graduate from the program.
Content from ED Review: ED Review is a product of the U.S. Department of Education Office of Communications and Outreach, State and Local Engagement
