The University of Chicago has announced a series of initiatives designed to diminish student loans and enroll more low-income students.
According to the Huffington Post, the prestigious school announced on Wednesday, Oct. 1, the launch of the No Barriers program, which strives to create aid packages void of debt-inducing loans.
The program eliminates application fees for families applying for financial aid as well as pressure on students under financial aid to have jobs during the academic year.
It also provides more scholarships, career guidance and paid summer internships to students in need of financial aid.
The university will additionally be creating over 100 workshops around the US dedicated to explaining the financial aid process.
University of Chicago President Robert Zimmer said in a statement,
We want to ensure that students of high ability can aspire to join this community without financial worry, and with comprehensive support for their success both in the College and beyond graduation.
Terry Hartle of the American Council on Education called No Barriers the most significant effort from a distinguished college to eliminate loans in aid packages.
According to Hartle, the amount of low-income students in the best schools in the country hasn’t really changed over the past 20 years.
About 12 percent of University of Chicago freshman are from low-income families, HuffPost reports, higher than most would expect considering one year at the college costs more than $62,000 for tuition, room and board.
Higher education economist Sandy Baum hailed No Barriers but stressed that the best way to improve the likelihood of success for kids from impoverished families is through early education.
She said,
They aren’t going to solve the problem. We need to solve the problem earlier in these kids’ lives.
The University of Virginia tried eliminating loans but revoked the decision last year due to the effect it had on enrollment fees.
H/T: Huffington Post, Photo Courtesy: Wikipedia
Read more: http://elitedaily.com/news/business/university-of-chicago-eliminate-student-loans/782552/
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