Students Flock To Net Price Calculators For Aid Estimates
Even before the Oct. 29th deadline for all colleges to post net price calculators, an estimated 750,000 college-bound students tried the new technology to get estimates of their aid eligibility before applying for admittance. An estimated 1,500 colleges out of 6,800 are posting predictive NPCs that generate accurate aid, net price, and out of pocket cost estimates in just minutes so families can reliably plan how to pay for college.
/EINPresswire.com/INDIANAPOLIS, IN - October 28, 2011- Prospective college students and their families across the country are using new net price calculators (NPC) on college Web sites to learn how much their education will really cost - even before all schools meet Saturday's federal deadline for posting NPC technology.
In the weeks before the deadline, an estimated 750,000 people used the hundreds of NPCs already posted to discover their costs before applying for admittance.
At a minimum, these calculators determine a student's net price, which is a college's sticker price, or cost of attendance, minus free grant aid that a student is eligible to receive.
Many schools are providing potential students and their families much more insight including eligibility for 'self-help' financial aid such as work-study programs, military aid, and federal education loans to estimate of a student's out-of-pocket cost.
Between 1,100 and 1,500 institutions are expected to install these more sophisticated, 'predictive' NPCs, which use current or future aid and cost formulas to ensure accuracy.
"Based on NPC usage we've seen so far and the number of high-quality calculators that will be live by Saturday, we conservatively expect at least five million college-bound students will use sophisticated, predictive calculators during the next 12 months," said Jeff Whorley, president of Student Aid Services, the leading provider of NPCs with 580 client campuses.
Student Aid Services' analysis of NPC usage is based on estimates for the handful of companies that provide custom cost-estimation tools.
However, most of the other approximately 5,700 post-secondary schools will post NPCs based on the free federal template calculator. Estimates of student's eligibility for free grant aid and net price from these 'reflective' NPCs usually are based on two-year-old data and often are far less reliable for college planning than estimates from custom NPCs. A 2010 test of nearly 145,000 real students' financial profiles showed the federal template calculator produced inaccurate aid eligibility and net prices 54 percent of the time.
"Often these estimates by federal template NPCs show schools to be more expensive than they actually are," Whorley said. "That's one reason we have seen so many institutions choose more accurate technology."
How to Gauge NPC Accuracy
NPC accuracy varies because of many factors, including how much data is gathered. The more questions an NPC asks, the greater its accuracy should be. NPCs built with the federal template typically ask fewer than 12 questions. NPCs that ask 30 to 40 questions produce more accurate and useful information for students starting college planning.
"A calculator that asks only 8 or 10 questions seems appealing, but if that calculator provides an inaccurate estimation of net cost it doesn't really help with selecting a college," Whorley said. "Our easy-to-use technology generates very reliable cost estimates for college planning in a few minutes. That is time well spent."
About Student Aid Services, Inc.
Student Aid Services, Inc. is the nation's leading provider of college-cost estimation technology with 580 campus NPCs in use nationwide. The company's predictive ThinkAhead™ Net Price Calculator is customized to post-secondary institutions' needs and budgets so they can offer prospective and current students accurate aid eligibility, net price, and out-of-pocket cost estimates useful for college planning. Colleges using Student Aid Services' NPC go beyond the federal regulation's minimum requirements and can calculate work-study, military aid, federal education loans, and institutional scholarships in English or Spanish to provide accurate insights. Student Aid Services is a private company with offices in Indianapolis, IN and Sacramento, CA. www.studentaidservices.com
(C) Student Aid Services, Inc., 2011. All Rights Reserved. Student Aid Services and ThinkAhead are trademarks of Student Aid Services, Inc., in the United States, other countries, or both. Other company, product, or service names may be trademarks or service marks of others.
Media Contact
Mary A. C. Fallon
communications consultant
Student Aid Services, Inc.
mfallon@studentaidservices.com
916-629-7050
916-832-7627 mobile
http://www.studentaidservices.com
PR courtesy of Online PR Media: http://bit.ly/ssTYjY
/EINPresswire.com/INDIANAPOLIS, IN - October 28, 2011- Prospective college students and their families across the country are using new net price calculators (NPC) on college Web sites to learn how much their education will really cost - even before all schools meet Saturday's federal deadline for posting NPC technology.
In the weeks before the deadline, an estimated 750,000 people used the hundreds of NPCs already posted to discover their costs before applying for admittance.
At a minimum, these calculators determine a student's net price, which is a college's sticker price, or cost of attendance, minus free grant aid that a student is eligible to receive.
Many schools are providing potential students and their families much more insight including eligibility for 'self-help' financial aid such as work-study programs, military aid, and federal education loans to estimate of a student's out-of-pocket cost.
Between 1,100 and 1,500 institutions are expected to install these more sophisticated, 'predictive' NPCs, which use current or future aid and cost formulas to ensure accuracy.
"Based on NPC usage we've seen so far and the number of high-quality calculators that will be live by Saturday, we conservatively expect at least five million college-bound students will use sophisticated, predictive calculators during the next 12 months," said Jeff Whorley, president of Student Aid Services, the leading provider of NPCs with 580 client campuses.
Student Aid Services' analysis of NPC usage is based on estimates for the handful of companies that provide custom cost-estimation tools.
However, most of the other approximately 5,700 post-secondary schools will post NPCs based on the free federal template calculator. Estimates of student's eligibility for free grant aid and net price from these 'reflective' NPCs usually are based on two-year-old data and often are far less reliable for college planning than estimates from custom NPCs. A 2010 test of nearly 145,000 real students' financial profiles showed the federal template calculator produced inaccurate aid eligibility and net prices 54 percent of the time.
"Often these estimates by federal template NPCs show schools to be more expensive than they actually are," Whorley said. "That's one reason we have seen so many institutions choose more accurate technology."
How to Gauge NPC Accuracy
NPC accuracy varies because of many factors, including how much data is gathered. The more questions an NPC asks, the greater its accuracy should be. NPCs built with the federal template typically ask fewer than 12 questions. NPCs that ask 30 to 40 questions produce more accurate and useful information for students starting college planning.
"A calculator that asks only 8 or 10 questions seems appealing, but if that calculator provides an inaccurate estimation of net cost it doesn't really help with selecting a college," Whorley said. "Our easy-to-use technology generates very reliable cost estimates for college planning in a few minutes. That is time well spent."
About Student Aid Services, Inc.
Student Aid Services, Inc. is the nation's leading provider of college-cost estimation technology with 580 campus NPCs in use nationwide. The company's predictive ThinkAhead™ Net Price Calculator is customized to post-secondary institutions' needs and budgets so they can offer prospective and current students accurate aid eligibility, net price, and out-of-pocket cost estimates useful for college planning. Colleges using Student Aid Services' NPC go beyond the federal regulation's minimum requirements and can calculate work-study, military aid, federal education loans, and institutional scholarships in English or Spanish to provide accurate insights. Student Aid Services is a private company with offices in Indianapolis, IN and Sacramento, CA. www.studentaidservices.com
(C) Student Aid Services, Inc., 2011. All Rights Reserved. Student Aid Services and ThinkAhead are trademarks of Student Aid Services, Inc., in the United States, other countries, or both. Other company, product, or service names may be trademarks or service marks of others.
Media Contact
Mary A. C. Fallon
communications consultant
Student Aid Services, Inc.
mfallon@studentaidservices.com
916-629-7050
916-832-7627 mobile
http://www.studentaidservices.com
PR courtesy of Online PR Media: http://bit.ly/ssTYjY
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