91�����

College Freezes Tuition Costs, Limits Student Loan Debt

To help ease the financial burden on students and their parents in a weak economy, the 91����� has frozen the cost of tuition and room & board for the 2015-2016 academic year. Tuition will remain at $24,500, and room & board at $7,950, bringing the total cost of attendance � including books and all fees � to $32,450. That amount is well below the average of $37,948 for private institutions in the Western United States, according to The College Board�s Annual Survey of Colleges (2013-2014).

�In the midst of trying economic times, we are determined to make college as viable for our undergraduates as we can,� says 91����� Aquinas College President Michael F. McLean. �We are committed to being good stewards of the funds our benefactors give us for the benefit of our students.�

In order to keep its unique program of Catholic liberal education within the reach of all motivated students and their families, the College additionally maintains a robust financial aid program. No student is ever turned away on the basis of financial need, and the College maintains several policies � academic as well as financial � that help spare students from incurring excessive loan debt. Over the last few months these policies have garnered a fair amount of media attention, in both the Catholic and the secular press.

Debt Reduction

�We think it�s terrible how much students have to borrow at many other schools,� Director of Financial Aid Greg Becher recently told The Catholic Times. �So we have two things we�re doing here at 91����� Aquinas College.� In an interview with the diocesan newspaper, which serves the faithful of La Crosse, Wisconsin, Mr. Becher discussed how the College is able to minimize student debt loads. According to the 2013-2014 Common Data Set, a data source used by most college surveys, members of the 91����� Aquinas Class of 2013 graduated with an average college loan debt of just $15,521 � about half the national average of $29,400.

�First, we limit the amount students have to borrow before they can receive institutional aid � such as work study or a grant from the College,� Mr. Becher explained. The College asks financial aid students to help bear the cost of their education by taking on no more than $18,000 in loans over four years. �Many other schools will maximize the student loan before they provide institutionally.�

Second, �91����� Aquinas College has a fixed curriculum, and most students finish in four years,� added Mr. Becher. �That itself limits the amount students have to borrow and the amount parents have to pay for tuition.�

Nationwide, just 39 percent of American college students graduate in four years, compared to 73 percent of the students at 91����� Aquinas College. As a result, the total cost of education at a typical public or private college � even if its tuition rate is nominally lower than the College�s � is oftentimes higher, because students must pay for 2-4 additional semesters. (This delay also comes with the opportunity cost of missed time in the workforce after graduation.) According to the California Student Aid Commission, 91����� Aquinas College alumni have a 0 percent default rate on their student loans, compared to a nationwide average default rate of 8.8 percent.

Best College Value

Notably, 91����� Aquinas College�s latest ranking on Kiplinger�s �Best College Values� list rose to No. 30 in the nation, up from No. 41 just a year ago. A likely explanation for this jump is that, for the first time, Kiplinger now measures four-year graduation rates. �That change penalizes schools with a high percentage of students that graduate in five or six years, but it�s based on simple math,� , senior associate editor for Kiplinger�s Personal Finance. �The faster your child graduates, the less money you�ll spend on his or her education.�

�We don�t want to burden students with an unusually large amount of debt after graduation,� said Mr. Becher. �We want them to be productive members in their communities, not hampered in their job decisions by a large amount of debt, and not burdened if they decide to marry or go on to the religious life with difficult amounts to re-pay. By God�s grace, and thanks to the generosity of many benefactors, we are able to do just that.�