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NAIS/SSS Financial Aid Workshop Series Fall 2002 Mark J. Mitchell, VP Financial Aid Services

Financial Aid Trends and Research in Independent Schools. NAIS/SSS Financial Aid Workshop Series Fall 2002 Mark J. Mitchell, VP Financial Aid Services. Evaluating Trends and Research: Key Questions. Are demand and enrollment tied to tuition trends? To financial aid trends?

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NAIS/SSS Financial Aid Workshop Series Fall 2002 Mark J. Mitchell, VP Financial Aid Services

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  1. Financial Aid Trends and Research in Independent Schools NAIS/SSS Financial Aid Workshop Series Fall 2002 Mark J. Mitchell, VP Financial Aid Services

  2. Evaluating Trends and Research: Key Questions • Are demand and enrollment tied to tuition trends? To financial aid trends? • Are the numbers of students receiving financial aid changing? Are schools extending more aid to more students? • Is financial aid keeping pace with tuition increases? • How can we quantify whether financial aid impacts retention? • Do you know where your school fits?

  3. About Demand: 10-year Trends • Independent schools have become increasingly competitive. • Since 1991 boarding-day schools’ inquiries per enrollee have increased by 58%, the highest inquiry jump of any school type. • Over the last ten years, day schools have seen the largest increase in applications per enrollee (32%) and the second largest increase in inquiries (52.6%). • While boarding schools have increased their acceptances per enrollee by 7.1% since 1991, all other types of schools have not changed the number of acceptances per enrollee.

  4. About Enrollment Patterns • The ten-year growth rate for students enrolled at day schools doubles the growth rate of those enrolled at boarding-day schools and it is six times bigger than the growth of students at day-boarding schools. • The lowest ten-year growth rate is for students enrolled at day-boarding schools. These schools have lost 3.8% of students since 1997. • Enrollment at boarding-day schools has the fastest rate of increase since 1997 and the second fastest since 1992. • In boarding schools, enrollment has remained steady since 1992. Since 1997, enrollment in boarding schools has actually decreased by 1.2%. • Sixth and ninth grades show the fastest rate of enrollment increase since 1992, while the kindergarten and 12th grade enrollments show the slowest.

  5. About Students of Color • Over the last ten years, enrollment of students of color has increased the most in day schools, double the increase found in boarding-day schools. • There has been no 10-year change in enrollment of students of color at day-boarding schools, but this enrollment has decreased by 4.3% since 1997. • Students of color enrolled in boarding schools have increased by 16.3% since 1992, but decreased by 8.6% since 1997.

  6. (In inflation-adjusted dollars)

  7. About Tuition Patterns • Median day school tuitions for sixth grade have increased the fastest since 1992. • Day school tuitions for sixth and twelfth grades have both increased by over 16% in the last 5 years. • Twelfth grade tuitions have almost the same rate of increase for day and 7-day boarding schools.

  8. (Avg grant change reflects inflation-adjusted dollars)

  9. About Financial Aid: 10-year Trends • Since 1992, the average financial aid grant at day schools has increased by 45% but the number of students receiving the grants have decreased by 2.1%. • Financial aid grants in boarding schools have increased by 25.6% but the number of students benefiting from financial aid has decreased by 7.6% since 1992. • Among day-boarding schools, financial aid grants have increased by 11.6% while the number of students receiving financial aid has increased by 21.2%.

  10. (Avg grant change reflects inflation-adjusted dollars)

  11. About Financial Aid: 5-year Trends Boarding-day and day schools have similar rates of increase in their financial aid grants since 1997. The number of boarding-day students receiving financial aid has decreased by 5.6%, while the number of day students on financial aid has decreased by 1.4% since 1997. Both 5- and 10-year trends indicate that higher average awards are being provided to fewer students.

  12. (In inflation-adjusted dollars)

  13. (In inflation-adjusted dollars)

  14. About Financial Operations • Day schools have a 10-year rate of growth of 23.7% in income, while their expenses growth is 20.5%. • In day-boarding schools, the 10-year expenses growth (19.6%) slightly outpaces the 10-year income growth (19.3%). • Boarding-day schools have been most efficient since 1996, with growth in expenses of only 0.7% and income growth of 5.3%. • For all schools, the rate of growth in income is 3 percentage points higher than the rate of growth in expenses since 1992.

  15. 2002 NAIS Attrition Study and Financial Aid • Retention is cheaper than recruitment • Differentiates school characteristics among high, medium, and low attrition schools • High (19.24%), Medium (8.46%), Low (3.43%) • Financial-aid related characteristics probed: • Size of grants • Grant-to-tuition ratio • Percentage of students receiving grants • Percentage of budget allocated to financial aid • Presence of financial aid director

  16. Financial Aid and Attrition Facts • Compared to high attrition schools, low attrition schools: • Give larger average financial aid grants • Have a lower percentage of students receiving aid • Meet a higher proportion of tuition with financial aid • Allocate slightly less of their total budget on financial aid expenditure • Are more likely to be among schools with a full-time financial aid director

  17. Financial Aid and Attrition Patterns

  18. Presence of Director of Financial Aid • Of schools with a full-time director of financial aid: • About 40% of schools saw low attrition while 16% experienced high attrition occur • Accounted for only 5% of schools in the sample • Of schools without a full-time director of financial aid: • Just over 20% saw low attrition while 27% experienced high attrition • Only two full-time positions studied showed a greater correlation to student retention: • Director of diversity • Psychologist

  19. Presence of Director of Financial Aid

  20. Presence of Director of Financial Aid

  21. Key Lessons • Even with rising tuition, demand is increasing • Even though enrollments are increasing for most types of schools, there is a slowdown in the past 5 years and stagnation in growth of student of color population • Even though financial aid awards are keeping pace with tuition growth, there is stagnation in the proportion of students receiving financial aid • Increasing financial aid awards do not appear to have an adverse effect on schools’ financial operations—all schools have income growth outpacing expense growth • Appear to be links between strategic staffing and resource decisions in financial aid management and student retention

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