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Pell surge after FAFSA simplification: 1.7M more qualify
A federal aid overhaul produced a sharp jump in need-based aid eligibility: the FAFSA simplification changes have pushed roughly 1.7 million additional students into maximum Pell Grant...
Indiana moves to cut ‘low‑earning’ degrees: legislators bury provision
Indiana’s Senate approved Senate Bill 199, which contains a buried provision that would eliminate public college degree programs judged “low‑earning” relative to high‑school graduates,...
Degree apprenticeships: a practical pipeline for regional workforce
A New America report is spotlighting U.S. degree apprenticeships as a growing, industry-vetted pathway that pays students while they earn credentials aligned to employer needs. The report,...
Admissions and testing shifts: UCSD, College Board and the SAT
Selective institutions are continuing to recalibrate admissions criteria as standardized testing prospects shift. University of California San Diego officials signaled the campus can operate...
Portrait of self‑supported transfer students: new Common App data
New Common App data offers a first detailed look at self‑supported transfer applicants: financially independent transfers are disproportionately first‑generation, carry higher financial need, and...
Accreditation, visas and funding: Washington and state moves reshape operations
Federal and state policy shifts are converging on institutional operations. Inside Higher Ed’s week‑in‑review flagged the Department of Education’s plan to revise accreditation rules this...
Faculty reputational crises: Oxford and Duke named in high‑profile inquiries
Two high‑impact governance and reputational stories surfaced in the UK and U.S. A Good Law Project report identified Bent Flyvbjerg, an emeritus professor at Oxford Saïd Business School, as the...
Institutions cut ties over values and governance: Belfast and Benedictine cases
Universities are publicly severing institutional ties tied to reputational and values concerns. Queen’s University Belfast moved to remove Senator George J. Mitchell’s name from an institute and...
AI and classroom practice: students, faculty and new methods collide
Higher‑education classrooms are seeing a collision of student adoption, pedagogical experimentation, and institutional lag. A survey of roughly 1,000 college students by Honorlock found that while...
Active learning tools and operational skills: Photovoice, OQ and classroom execution
Instructors are retooling classwork to center execution and lived experience. Two classroom innovations surfaced: Photovoice, a participatory action‑research method repurposed as an assignment in...
University leaders under pressure: accreditation fights and high-profile faculty ties
University leaders are confronting an intensifying mix of regulatory scrutiny, governance burdens and reputational risk. At the American Association of Colleges and Universities meeting, Rutgers...
FAFSA overhaul fuels Pell surge — 1.5 million more eligible
A new National College Attainment Network report shows FAFSA simplification produced a sharp rise in Pell Grant eligibility, with roughly 1.5 million additional students qualifying for the maximum...
Brown disburses settlement funds — local workforce development gets $3 million
Brown University has begun allocating $3 million in workforce-development grants in Rhode Island as part of its voluntary settlement with the federal government to restore previously frozen...
Sisters withdraw sponsorship — Benedictine College severs founding governance ties
The Sisters of Mount St. Scholastica announced they will discontinue active sponsorship of Benedictine College, ending the formal governance role the religious order held since founding Mount St....
College Board bans smart glasses — testing security tightened
The College Board has prohibited the use of smart glasses during SAT administrations amid rising concerns that wearable devices can be used to receive real-time answers. The testing agency's move...
Campus AI moment... students skeptical, agents raise security alarms
Colleges are confronting a two-sided AI problem: students largely learn generative tools on their own while emergent agentic systems create fresh security and privacy risks. An Honorlock survey of...
UC San Diego affirms test-optional stance — selective schools can remediate gaps
The University of California, San Diego is moving forward without the SAT as a component of admission, arguing selective institutions can address preparation gaps after students enroll. UCSD’s...
Self-supported transfer students: Common App data spotlights financial complexity
New Common App data profiles financially independent transfer applicants, showing they are more likely to be first-generation students with higher demonstrated need and complex academic pathways....
MBA applications stumble — visas and immigration policy hit international demand
U.S. business schools are reporting sharp declines in MBA applications this admissions cycle, with international applicant pools contracting 20%–30% at some programs. Admissions officers and...
Partial federal shutdown extends — Education Department funding in limbo
A partial federal government shutdown is spilling into the week after House leaders delayed a funding vote, complicating a near-term funding path for the Department of Education and other...