Private colleges are offering discounts at historic levels

Stephen Burd was quoted in Marketwatch on how private and public colleges are using merit aid to attract qualified, wealthy students.

But both private and public colleges are also using financial aid to attract a certain type of student — very qualified and/or relatively wealthy — said Stephen Burd, a senior policy analyst with the Education Policy Program at New America, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank. These students can either help colleges move up in the rankings or bring in more revenue for the schools because even with a discount, wealthier students end up paying a relatively high price.

“I don’t think this means that they’re trying to do a better and better job of meeting the needs of their students,” Burd said. “It means they’re trying to do a better job of recruiting the students they want to get.”