According to a new survey by Sallie Mae, undergraduates covered 30 percent of the cost of college themselves last year—the highest percentage since 2007. Most of their contribution came from student loans, of which they borrowed about one thousand dollars more than in 2009. The weak economy and skyrocketing tuition are also driving families to eliminate college choices after receiving inadequate financial aid packages, and many other students are choosing to live at home to save costs.
Monthly Archives: July 2012
The New York Times explores how data mining is replacing some of the ‘intuition and serendipity” that sometimes influenced student outcomes. “Data mining hinges on one reality about life on the Web: what you do there leaves behind a trail of digital breadcrumbs. Companies scoop those up to tailor services, like the matchmaking of eHarmony or the book recommendations of Amazon. Now colleges, eager to get students out the door more efficiently, are awakening to the opportunities of so-called Big Data …’”
Read original article: Big Data on Campus by The New York Times
The eighth annual Study of the Higher Education Chief Information Officer Roles and Effectiveness examines three key areas:
- Changing demographics
- Evolution of the CIO role—its current and future state
- Perception of effectiveness—‘How are they doing?’
This year, more than 2,700 CIOs from higher education institutions participated. As well, more than 400 institutional management teams were surveyed. Standout findings of this year’s study:
The role, well-being, and consequently the future, of the American research university is in a more precarious state that it has been in more than half a century according to the latest report published by The Research Universities Futures Consortium.
The causes for uncertainty are varied: reduced federal and state funding, eroding endowments, global competition, and increasingly complex compliance and reporting requirements. These factors have combined to create a perfect storm that has battered public and political confidence and devalued the perceived importance of university-based research. However, this doubt is juxtaposed by an equal expectation for universities to produce research products that address “a growing list of complex problems,” according to the Consortium.
Encouragingly, despite the slow recovery from the recession that began five years ago, individuals, U.S. foundations and corporations are still opening their wallets—albeit conservatively—for the causes and organizations they deem important.
Giving to education remains on the rise, according to the recently released Giving USA: The Annual Report on Philanthropy for the year 2011 (2012). Chicago: Giving USA Foundation. While giving to educational organizations is on the upswing, the increase in charitable giving from 2010 to 2011 overall marked the second slowest increase of any two-year span following a recession since the 70s. However, according to the report, giving to education showed a modest increase in the 2010-2011 fiscal year.
