The Presidents Forum appreciates the opportunity to respond to the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee’s Request for Information on improving the federal financial aid system. We commend Chair Cassidy and the Committee for seeking input from across the higher education community to make student aid more transparent, accessible, and effective for today’s learners.
The Presidents Forum is a national network of 19 college and university presidents committed to expanding access, affordability, and accountability in higher education. Our member institutions collectively serve more than one million students, many of whom are working adults, parents, veterans, and first-generation learners. Together, we focus on policies and practices that align postsecondary education with the needs of students, employers, and the modern workforce.
The responses below embody the Forum’s shared commitment to student-centered innovation and collaborative problem solving. It draws on the expertise of our member institutions, which are leaders in distance learning, competency-based education, and workforce-aligned credentialing. Across every question, our guiding principle is simple: financial aid policy should empower learners to make informed choices, complete their programs, and achieve lasting economic mobility.
Wesley Smith,
Executive Director
Price Transparency
- What are the pros and cons of the federal government developing a universal net price calculator vs. students relying on individual colleges’ calculators?
The Presidents Forum supports efforts that make costs clearer and easier to compare. For working learners and adult students, consistent and accessible cost information is essential to planning and persistence. A single, standardized calculator could simplify the process, requiring the same inputs across institutions and helping students understand total costs before they enroll.
However, a universal tool must account for the nuances of real cost. Many institutions serve nonresidential students who already cover housing, food, and transportation. These expenses can make a total “cost of attendance” appear higher and less attainable than it is. In addition, if differential tuition or program-specific fees are omitted, estimates may understate actual costs.
Any federal model should balance transparency with contextual accuracy, ensuring that students can distinguish between direct institutional charges and general living expenses.
A universal calculator must also recognize the diversity of learner populations. Costs and available benefits can vary significantly for military students, community college transfers, and corporate learners whose tuition assistance or credit transfer arrangements reduce direct institutional charges.
- What data elements would the federal government need to collect in order to build a truly useful universal net price calculator?
A universal calculator would only be valuable if the data behind it are complete, comparable, and consistently reported. Each institution should provide a full set of standardized cost-of-attendance elements including tuition and fees, textbooks and supplies, housing, food, transportation, and personal expenses so students can make accurate side-by-side comparisons.
To ensure transparency, all categories should be mandatory. Institutions should not be able to omit or skip fields, since incomplete data would undermine the calculator’s accuracy and fairness for students.
For many working learners and other nontraditional students, the mix of expenses and resources differs from those of recent high school graduates. Any federal model should be flexible enough to reflect these varied circumstances while maintaining clear and consistent definitions across institutions.
Comprehensive and standardized reporting will make the calculator a reliable tool for students, institutions, and policymakers alike while strengthening transparency and accountability without adding unnecessary complexity.
- What actions should the federal government consider to ensure that students and families can compare non-tuition costs, such as housing and food, across colleges?
To make non-tuition cost comparisons meaningful, all institutions should be required to report a consistent set of categories, including housing, food, transportation, textbooks and supplies, and personal expenses. Each category should be mandatory so that students receive a complete and comparable view of total costs.
- Standardize data collection: Colleges should report non-tuition expenses using common definitions and include on-campus and off-campus housing, meal plans, transportation, textbooks and supplies, and miscellaneous personal costs. Standardization would make comparisons clearer and reduce confusion for students and families.
- Centralize and publicize information: The federal government could expand existing tools, such as the College Scorecard or a universal net price calculator, to display non-tuition costs in one place. Centralized and accessible information would allow students to understand total costs earlier in their decision-making process.
- Require timely and transparent updates: Institutions should update their non-tuition cost data annually and explain how figures are calculated. This transparency would ensure that families are relying on current and accurate information.
- Include regional and instructional context: Costs such as housing and food vary widely by geography and by delivery model. Notably, an institution serving primarily online students should ensure estimates match the varied realities of where students actually live, not where the institution is located.
- Enhance outreach and guidance: Clear explanations and outreach can help students, especially working learners, understand how non-tuition costs relate to their own circumstances and which expenses are already part of their existing living budgets.
Together, these actions would strengthen transparency, improve comparability, and support more informed financial decisions without imposing unnecessary complexity on institutions.
Value Transparency
- What are the strengths and weaknesses of the College Scorecard?
The College Scorecard is a valuable tool that promotes transparency and helps students compare colleges based on cost, outcomes, and other key factors. Its simple layout and accessible design make it easy to navigate, offering a clear starting point for students and families exploring their options.
However, the Scorecard presents several challenges that limit its usefulness, particularly for the growing number of working learners and students enrolled in nontraditional programs. The data are largely based on fall enrollment rather than a twelve-month unduplicated headcount, which understates enrollment at institutions with rolling admissions or flexible start dates. As many innovative and access-focused schools serve students year-round, this approach does not fully reflect their reach or mission. In addition, excluding noncredit learners from reported totals gives an incomplete picture of how institutions contribute to workforce development and lifelong learning.
The Scorecard also tends to present cost and outcome information primarily for traditional students, which overlooks significant learner populations served by many Presidents Forum institutions. Military and veteran students, community college transfers, and corporate learners often experience different pricing structures and benefit programs that are not captured in current Scorecard categories. Public institutions with in-state and out-of-state tuition rates face similar challenges in conveying accurate cost comparisons. A more nuanced presentation of these learner categories would make the Scorecard more accurate and useful for all students.
While some lag in data is expected in any federal reporting system, maintaining data that are as timely and representative as possible is important to preserve the Scorecard’s credibility and usefulness.
- What policy changes would improve the quality of data on college value that are available to prospective students and their families?
Improving data on college value begins with providing students and families with information that reflects the realities of today’s higher education landscape. System-level averages often mask important differences in student outcomes. For many learners, especially working adults making career-based decisions, program-level data are far more meaningful than institution-wide figures. Reporting employment rates and median earnings by program would allow students to better understand their potential return on investment and choose pathways aligned with their goals.
As Workforce Pell begins to be implemented, program-level data will become even more important. Students considering short-term or certificate programs will need clear information on outcomes and return on investment to make informed decisions about where to enroll. Reliable data on employment and earnings by program will help ensure that Workforce Pell achieves its goal of connecting education to economic opportunity.
A search function that helps users identify all programs within a given distance or discipline would make value comparisons more intuitive and actionable.
The Presidents Forum supports continued modernization of education data systems to provide clear, accurate, and program-level information that empowers students to make informed choices. We welcome the opportunity to work with policymakers on approaches that highlight true educational value for today’s diverse learners.
- How can the federal government partner with private and non-profit entities to ensure that information on college value reaches prospective students and their families?
The federal government can expand the reach and usefulness of college value information by partnering with schools, community organizations, and employers to engage students earlier and more effectively. Many students make key decisions about college before completing high school, yet few have access to clear, contextual information about costs, financial aid, and long-term value. Collaborating with nonprofit and private partners to integrate these topics into high school counseling, community programming, and digital outreach would help students and families make better-informed choices.
Partnerships with employers also offer an important opportunity. Training and information sessions for companies and nonprofit organizations on educational benefits and Section 127 education assistance programs could help expand awareness of existing pathways for adults to pursue education with employer support. These collaborations would connect the dots between college value, career advancement, and workforce development.
By encouraging employers and other organizations to fully leverage the tax advantages of education benefits, we can advance efforts to make information about college value more accessible, actionable, and relevant for every type of learner.
Financial Aid Offers
- Over the last few years, many colleges have adopted best practices in their financial aid offer letters. What lessons have they learned from this change in practice?
Institutions that have refined their financial aid offer letters have learned that clarity and structure matter most. Separating grants and scholarships from loans and using plain, student-friendly language helps students and families understand what funding is truly available and what must be repaid. Clear labeling and straightforward explanations on the true cost of attendance reduce confusion and make it easier for students to make responsible financial choices.
Colleges have also found value in visually engaging and interactive formats that highlight key details without overwhelming students with fine print. These approaches make critical information more accessible to first-generation students, working learners, and others who may be navigating the process independently.
As a convener of institutions committed to student-centered innovation, the Presidents Forum supports continued collaboration among colleges, policymakers, and design experts to refine communication tools that help every student understand the full scope of their financial aid options.
- What barriers exist to more colleges adopting best practices with their offer letters?
Several barriers can make it difficult for schools to fully adopt best practices in financial aid offer letters. For many institutions, technology and system limitations are a primary challenge. Updating financial aid software or integrating new templates often requires coordination with IT teams or external vendors and can involve added costs or long implementation timelines. Smaller or resource-constrained colleges may find these transitions especially difficult.
Another barrier is the concern that presenting the full cost of attendance alongside limited institutional aid may discourage students from enrolling. Some institutions hesitate to include indirect costs such as housing, food, textbooks and supplies, or transportation in offer letters, even though doing so improves transparency. The most effective way to address this is through clear communication that helps students understand the difference between direct costs paid to the institution and indirect costs they already manage in their daily lives.
The Presidents Forum encourages collaboration and shared learning across the higher education community to overcome these barriers. As a convener of innovative institutions, the Forum supports the development of adaptable templates, guidance, and technology solutions that make best practices feasible for colleges of every size and model.
- How should colleges communicate information about parent PLUS loans, which have less favorable terms than regular student loans and are not available to all families?
Colleges should take a proactive and transparent approach when communicating information about Parent PLUS loans. These loans differ from other types of aid, and families benefit from understanding their unique eligibility requirements, repayment obligations, and long-term financial implications before making borrowing decisions.
Institutions should include clear and detailed information about Parent PLUS loans in or alongside the financial aid offer letter, as well as on their websites. This should go beyond a basic description and clearly outline the credit-based nature of the loan, the application process, and how it differs from student loans. Providing an estimated repayment schedule and highlighting that repayment typically begins shortly after the final disbursement can help parents plan responsibly and avoid unexpected financial strain.
Importantly, Parent PLUS loans should be presented as an optional resource rather than as an assumed or automatic component of the financial aid package. The financial aid offer should first outline grants, scholarships, and student loans, followed by information about Parent PLUS loans that may be available if additional funding is needed.
By making this information easily accessible, timely, and specific, colleges can support responsible borrowing and help families make informed financial choices that align with their long-term goals.
Informed Borrowers
- What information on student loan repayment is most important for students to have when they are taking out the loans?
Students need clear and timely information that helps them understand how much they owe, what repayment will look like, and what supports are available if challenges arise.
They should receive a simple, personalized summary showing their cumulative loan balance, anticipated monthly payment segmented by principal and interest, total repayment period, and projected interest costs. Knowing these details helps students plan responsibly and avoid accumulating unexpected debt.
Students also need clear explanations of their rights and responsibilities, including options for prepayment, forbearance, and deferment, and the consequences of default. Providing this information in plain language at the time of borrowing and throughout their studies empowers students to make informed decisions and manage their repayment successfully.
- What is the best way to communicate information about loans to students so that they actively process it and do not just sign disclosures without reading them?
Students engage most effectively with loan information when it is interactive, personalized, and easy to understand. Schools have learned that providing information alone is not enough; students need opportunities to process and apply it. Interactive modules, short checkpoints, or counseling sessions at key points during the academic year help reinforce understanding and allow students to ask questions before accepting loans.
Many Presidents Forum institutions already use proactive communication and personalized data to help students understand how borrowing decisions affect their future repayment. By presenting individualized loan estimates and encouraging students to borrow only what they need, these institutions have reduced average student debt while maintaining strong academic and financial outcomes.
The federal government could support this effort by strengthening and expanding the Annual Student Loan Acknowledgment program to ensure all borrowers receive personalized, easy-to-read information about their total debt, repayment options, and projected obligations before borrowing each year.
- Are there special considerations that colleges should take when communicating information to students attending the short-term, workforce-oriented programs that will become eligible for Workforce Pell Grants in the coming years?
Clear and practical communication will be essential as Workforce Pell is implemented. Many students enrolling in short-term, workforce-oriented programs will be working adults seeking to upskill quickly or transition into new careers. Colleges should ensure these students understand both the immediate and long-term value of their programs, including how short-term credentials can serve as stepping stones toward higher degrees or additional certifications that lead to career advancement.
Students should also receive clear explanations of how Workforce Pell interacts with existing aid rules, including lifetime Pell Grant limits, enrollment intensity, and proration for shorter programs. Transparent information on these factors helps students plan how best to use their eligibility and avoid surprises later in their educational journey.
It is equally important to help students see these programs as part of a stackable, lifelong learning pathway rather than a one-time experience. Communicating how credentials can build on one another to open future opportunities reinforces the idea that education and career growth are continuous, connected processes.
- Other insights on how the federal government can work with all stakeholders to advance pro-student and pro-family policies.
One area that deserves federal emphasis is ensuring the timely processing and delivery of all forms of student aid, including military and veteran education benefits. Delays in disbursement can create unnecessary hardship for students who rely on these funds to cover tuition, housing, and other essential expenses. Prioritizing the accuracy and timeliness of aid delivery would reinforce the federal government’s commitment to supporting the success of military-affiliated students and their families.