It seems admission to college may be more about how much money students can pay out of pocket than good grades.
According to a survey by Inside Higher Ed, an online publication for higher education professionals, more than half of the admissions officers at public research universities, and more than a third at four-year colleges said that they had been working harder in the past year to recruit students who are not need-based and can pay for their education.
It’s an admission that was difficult for Richard Ludwick, president and CEO of Independent Colleges of Indiana to understand.
“(The findings) indicate something that is completely different than what my experiences have been. In most cases, for our institutions we have a blinded admission policy, which means that the people making the decisions on whether (a student) is admitted don’t know or pay attention to the financial situation,” he said. “I’m wondering if the survey asked if the (admission officers) were conscious of what they were doing because it would be counter to what typically happens.”
The survey questioned 462 admissions directors and enrollment managers in August and early September and it was assumed that they each understood the questions being asked. Twenty-two percent of respondents at four-year institutions said the economy had led them to pay more attention in their decision to students’ ability to pay and not need financial aid assistance.
Tom Weede, vice president of Enrollment Management at Butler University found the survey a concern and upsetting.
“We do not do that ever,” he said. “Not only do we not look at a student’s need when making an admission decision, we don’t even know what their need would be.”
Weede noted that 91 percent of Butler students receive financial aid, which shows that the university is more concerned with assuring they are getting a quality education, and not how they’re going to pay for it.
“It was stated that state universities are trying to look for students of greater means to try and make up for losses of state subsidies,” said Weede. “I think it sends an awful message to students saying we’re looking at your ability to pay as part of the decision.”
David A. Hawkins, director of public policy and research at the National Association of College Admission Counseling said that college admissions now are different than they used to be, which may be a reason behind the findings.
“Where many of the older admissions professionals came in through the institution and saw it as an ethically centered counseling role, there’s now a different dynamic that places a lot more emphasis on marketing,” he said.
Another troubling aspect of the survey is that 10 percent of the admissions directors at four-year colleges and almost 20 percent at private liberal arts schools, said that the students who could pay full price that they were admitting, on average, had lower grades and test scores than other admitted applicants.
Additionally, the admission officers also said they admitted minority students, athletes, veterans, children of alumni and international students with poorer qualifications as well.
“Part of our philosophy (at Butler) is that we work really hard to ensure that students with any economic background can try and come here,” said Weede. “We know that there are students from lower socio-economic levels that don’t think that they can afford a school like Butler. We try very hard to get the word out that they can afford it. The largest single item in our university budget is for financial aid.”
