Friday, September 27, 2019

Research has shown that one of the top 10 worries for parents and families is paying for college. In this episode, our guest expert Kelsey Ryder, Associate Director, Financial Literacy & Counseling shares important dates and support systems for your students as they navigate the financial aid process. 

Kelsey Ryder, Associate Director, Financial Literacy & Counseling

Data Dive with Mirra

  • Our students demonstrate high levels of confidence in their ability to pay tuition and housing (on average 6.26 on 1-7 Likert scale); however, confidence in ability to pay for social expenses is a little lower (average 5.97)
  • Further, confidence in ability to pay can depend a lot on student backgrounds. For example, 55% of students who are first generation (neither parent has a bachelor’s degree) feel confident in their ability to pay tuition compared to 74% of continuing generation (one parent has a bachelor’s degree)
  • While students may demonstrate high levels of confidence in their ability to pay, understanding the terms and requirements of financial aid and budgeting is quite different! A little over half of students feel confident in understanding their loans, for example.
  • Working on campus has so many benefits beyond financial! Students who work on campus in their first semester have an average GPA of 3.06 compared to those who do not work on campus: 2.92
  • An important mention about food insecurity: A little over 1/3 of students tell us that within that first month or two, they have skipped meals because of not having enough money for food. Food pantry and Hawkeye Meal Share are great resources!

Episode Resources

Listen to Episode 4