鈥淔ree college鈥� proposals are multiplying like rabbits as Democratic presidential candidates jump on board with the idea. The most recent came last week.
Federal lawmakers are proposing their own versions. Two Democratic senators鈥攂acked by some of the presidential hopefuls鈥攈ave introduced the which would cover all costs of public college without requiring students to get loans. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders has long called for programs that cover the cost of public-college tuition.
Half the states have versions of these programs, commonly known as 鈥減romise鈥� programs, in place, . Other states are debating versions of the programs fast and furiously (though most haven鈥檛 been enacted yet). , too.
But all promise programs are not equal. Here are some key things to know as a flurry of proposals descends on you during this campaign season.
They generally don鈥檛 make college 鈥渇ree.鈥�
The rhetoric around 鈥渇ree college鈥� programs can make it seem like they cover all college costs for all students, but that鈥檚 not the case, said Sarah Pingel, an analyst who studies the issue at the Education Commission of the States. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e not typically the universal, you-don鈥檛-have-to-pay-anything kind of thing people assume when they hear 鈥榝ree college,鈥欌�� she said.
Most of the programs are scholarships that cover just the cost of tuition at community colleges. New York and Indiana are notable exceptions: Their scholarships cover tuition at four-year institutions. 鈥淒ebt-free鈥� proposals are different: they envision paying for most or all of the cost of attending college, so students don鈥檛 need to get loans.
Most promise programs are 鈥渓ast-dollar scholarships,鈥� meaning that they pay for whatever portion of tuition is left over after students use grants and financial aid. That can mean that low-income students, in particular, still face the big problem of paying for expenses like housing and food, which can account for nearly half the expense of attending college,
Not everyone can use them.
Promise programs often have rules that restrict their use to certain groups of students. Some, for instance, restrict participation to students in a certain family income bracket. Others require students to matriculate directly from high school to college, attend college fulltime, or choose certain fields of study in order to qualify.
Some programs also require that students meet minimum achievement markers, like grades or test scores, to get鈥攐r maintain鈥攁 promise scholarship. Since academic achievement is often linked to family income and educational background, these requirements can make it tougher for underserved students to get these scholarships.
It鈥檚 not clear that they all work.
A central idea behind 鈥渇ree college鈥� proposals is to boost college enrollment. That鈥檚 important because many low-income students think they can鈥檛 afford college, so they don鈥檛 even apply. But signals are mixed on whether making tuition free actually increases college-going.
A found limited impact on enrollment. found a wide range in how well they increase college attendance. , found a healthy boost, but also found that it aggravated differences in college access between wealthy and less wealthy students.
鈥淔ree college鈥� isn鈥檛 a new idea.
Some states and regions have had promise programs going for a long time. New Jersey鈥檚 Educational Opportunity Fund, which began in 1968, has been cited as particularly progressive, since it covers costs beyond tuition, and provides support services for its targeted low-income student population.
And there was a time when students didn鈥檛 need scholarships to go to college in the U.S. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, most U.S. public colleges and universities were free, .
Since then, however, college attendance has soared. And more recently, college pricetags have soared as states have decreased their support for higher education. Pell grant amounts for low-income students have increased, but not enough to keep up with the cost of college, so student debt鈥攆or all students, not just poor students鈥攈as soared.
And there you have it: We鈥檙e back to why plans for 鈥渇ree college鈥� are proliferating. And why 鈥渇ree college鈥� isn鈥檛 always the most accurate way to describe them.
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