College and universities have lobbied aggressively to beat back dozens of government proposals to measure their successes and failures, including a federal ratings system. Source: Colleges Flex Lobbying Muscle – WSJ See Bill Gross on the power of universities – see this to see how much revenue some of them receive yearly. I commented. Speaking […]
Obama Targets College Accreditors – WSJ (But Not Sen. Alexander)
November 6, 2015 by
The Obama administration on Friday plans to announce executive actions to lift standards and increase transparency at the self-policing groups that accredit colleges. Source: Obama Targets College Accreditors – WSJ Of course, Sen. Alexander rejects the idea. This is from a column he wrote in this paper. “…in one year Vanderbilt University spent a startling […]
An Admissions Surprise (Or a Marketing Ploy?)
October 18, 2015 by
Exclusive schools say they want more diversity. Will a new application process really get them there? Source: An Admissions Surprise From the Ivy League – The New York Times I commented. Since my comments use – as examples – Washington University’s Chancellor Mark Wrighton and Provost Holden Thorp, here are links to closely related stories about […]
Link to Wash. U. Leaders’ Comments on Aid to Low Income Students
October 18, 2015 by
Why Pretend?
October 7, 2015 by
Data on non-repayment rates shows a new dimension of the problem, particularly with for-profit colleges and historically black institutions. Source: Student Debt Is Worse Than You Think – The New York Times I had to take the opportunity to comment that “The Academic-Financial Complex runs what I call a “pass-through” scheme. I understand the academic part well […]
Top Colleges Doing the Most for Low-Income Students (NY Times)
September 18, 2015 by
Colleges Are Fooling You About “Tuition”
September 12, 2015 by
One thing college do know – they know what it is that most people don’t know, and how to mislead them. It’s amazing how hard they work to not disseminate knowledge. (See this post for another example of their efforts.) Anyway, look at this graph. PublishedVSNet_TuitionGraph There was a good article about this and some discussion […]
New Data Gives Clearer Picture of Student Debt – But What About Student Assets? Do They Have Them? AND What Data? Appropriate Data? I’m Afraid Not
September 10, 2015 by
The increases in debt and default rates are concentrated among students at for-profit and community colleges, even though those students borrow less on average. Source: New Data Gives Clearer Picture of Student Debt – The New York Times Here was my comment. Two points, one just about data, the other simple business sense. First, the […]
The value of university: Our first-ever college rankings | The Economist (IS VERY FLAWED)
Source: The value of university: Our first-ever college rankings | The Economist I commented. I’m a former math professor who has been observing the corrupt system of American higher education for decades. Even though I have little regard for this mainly corrupt and fraudulent system, I find that your rankings don’t help at all. Unfortunately, […]