This report from Demos documents how “financial supports can improve postsecondary success”.
Just as a postsecondary education has become essential for getting a decent job and entering the middle class, it has become financially out of reach for many of America’s young people. The cost of going to school has increased exponentially, while financial aid policies have increasingly abandoned students with the greatest financial need. This means that students and their families now pay—or borrow—a lot more for a college degree. The result is that more young people from low- to moderate-income families are enrolling in college only to drop out because of financial constraints.
In their search for an affordable education, growing numbers of young college students—those under age 24—are turning to community colleges; the vast majority of them enroll with the intention of transferring to a four-year institution. But only two in five young community college students complete a degree of any kind within six years of starting their studies. Although they face multiple obstacles to staying in school, financial constraints are a key barrier to their success.