Latino students are making “informed and pragmatic choices” when it comes to paying for college, according to a new brief from Excelencia in Education. At the same time, select colleges and universities are working to make a quality education more affordable for Latino – and all – students.
In 2005, the Excelencia released the first in-depth national review of Latino students’ participation in financial aid amongst all students. Revisiting that 20 years later, “there has clearly been some progress, but the need to expand access to opportunity remains,” according to the brief.
A growing demographic
Latinos are the youngest and fastest growing population in the U.S. They represent one in five students in postsecondary education and by 2030, Latinos’ enrollment in postsecondary education is projected to increase by 31%.
They are more likely to attend a community college compared to other racial/ethnic groups. About 40% of Latinos attend a public two-year institution, according to the brief. And the majority of Latino students (51%) are the first in their family to attend college.
They have the potential to benefit from institutional, state and national policies that increase access to a quality education. “Thus, finding ways to pay for college is a critical issue for Latinos, and other post-traditional students,” the brief’s foreword states.
Making it work
To access college, more than half of Latino undergraduate students mix their enrollment – either attending solely part time (28%) or changing enrollment intensity (27%) to make college work. And 56% work at least 30 hours per week while enrolled. In addition, most Latino students (89%) live off-campus.
When it comes to financial assistance, approximately 85% of Latino undergraduates applied for some form of financial aid in 2019-20, and about 71% of Latino undergrads received financial aid in that academic year. They use grants to pay for college more than loans. More than half of Latinos (67%) received grants in 2019-20 compared to 27% that received loans.
They use federal aid more than state, institutional or private financial aid.
However, the average federal aid Latino students receive is lower compared to other racial/ethnic groups, according to the brief. Latinos received an average of $6,741 in federal aid compared to $7,382 for Whites, $7,494 for Asians and $8,452 for African-American students.
That’s not to say they’re not receiving state aid. Nearly a third of Latino undergraduates receive state aid, a larger proportion than any other racial/ethnic group. Latinos received an average of $3,604 in state aid. In comparison, Whites received $3,406, African Americans received $3,390 and Asians received $4,784 in state aid.
When it comes to institutional aid, though, Latinos are less likely than any other racial/ethnic group to receive institutional aid. Less than a quarter (23%) of Latinos received institutional aid in 2019-20. Only 8% of Latino students attending a public two-year college received institutional aid that academic year.
About 13% of Latino students overall received aid from private sources, and only 6% of those attending public two-year colleges received private aid.
Expanding access
The brief also looks at how “trendsetting” institutions are improving affordability. Excelencia looked at institutions that have received its Seal of Excelencia — a national certification for institutions intentionally serving Latino students.
One strategy being employed is providing targeted institutional aid. This includes offering financial support to students who left the college due to life circumstances and providing scholarships to transfer, low-income and DACA students.
Miami Dade College, for example, established the American Dream Scholars Program that provides scholarship funds to cover the remaining cost of tuition and fees not covered by financial aid. The college also created the Last Mile Scholarship, which offers financial resources to students who left the institution with 13 or fewer credits remaining for their first associate degree.
Other strategies these institutions are using are:
- Facilitate career pathways through paid internships and employment opportunities while students are enrolled.
- Meet students’ basic needs through institutional services (e.g., food pantry) and emergency aid.
- Offer robust advising support services and workshops to inform how students navigate their educational finances.
In Illinois, Wilbur Wright College’s financial aid office has established a caseload management model to help foster relationships between students and an assigned advisor. Financial aid staff are trained to provide a bi-cultural approach to advising.
Policy recommendations
The brief also offers policy recommendations for the federal and state level to improve college affordability.
“The ability to intentionally serve Latino students at scale requires knowing what works to accelerate Latino student success and garnering investment at the state and federal levels,” the brief’s authors say.
State-level policy recommendations include investing in guaranteed tuition plans by family income to make college affordable for students with high financial need. Also, states should include the entire cost of attendance for state grants and support to calculate financial need. In addition, FAFSA completion should be a requirement in high school graduation. Finally, states should promote the return on investment of a degree to students and of the institutions where they earn degrees “to benefit the broader society,” the brief states.
At the federal level, the brief’s authors recommend that the Pell Grant program should be prioritized, basic needs should be included in financial aid calculations and the Federal Work-Study distribution formula should be revised to better support students with high financial need. A final recommendation is that cost containment should be incentivized with a recognition program.
