Featured Reports

When Financial Aid Falls Short

10 January 2019 In Featured Reports

When Financial Aid Falls Short

By MacGregor Obergfell

The Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) recently released a report on unmet need in higher education called When Financial Aid Falls Short based on Department of Education data from the 2015-2016 academic year.

Among the findings:

  • Nearly 75% of undergraduate students have unmet need. Unmet need, the difference between total cost of attendance and financial aid that does not need to be repaid, has increased 23% since the 2011-12 academic year.
  • The average amount of students’ unmet need varies by institution type.
    • At public two-year institutions, the average unmet need per student is $4,920.
    • At public four-year institutions, the average unmet need per student is $9,134.
    • At private, non-profit institutions, the average unmet need per student is $13,844.
    • At for-profit institutions, the average unmet need per student is $14,815.
  • The prevalence of unmet need varies by institution type.
    • At public institutions, 71% of students at two-year institutions and 75% of students at four-year institutions have unmet need.
    • At private non-profit institutions, 78% of students have unmet need.
    • At for-profit institutions, 93% of students have unmet need.
  • The frequency of unmet need varies by race.
    • Across institution types, black students are the most likely to have unmet need.
    • At public two-year institutions, 81% of black students have unmet need.
    • At public four-year institutions, 86% of black students have unmet need.
    • At private, not-for-profit institutions, 89% of black students have unmet need.
    • At for-profit institutions, 96% of black students have unmet need.
  • The amount of unmet need varies by race and income level.
    • Across all income levels, Asian American students have the greatest amount of unmet need.
    • For example, at public four-year institutions, the average unmet need across all races for the bottom income quartile is $12,792. Broken down by race, Asian American students average unmet need of $16,756, white students average unmet need of $13,286, black students average unmet need of $12,310, Latinx students average unmet need of $10,524, and Native students average unmet need of $9,892.