Category: Research/Policy

2019, admissions, College Access, Research/Policy

Does it Matter if You Attend a Top-Ranked Institution?

By Dr. Watson Scott Swail, President & Senior Research Scholar, Educational Policy Institute I read an article published this week by Richard Reeves and Katherine Guyot of Brookings titled: “US College Scandal: How much differences does going to a top university make?” There is nothing earth shattering here; it basically buttresses what most of us in the industry have said for years: attending a selective institution has … Continue reading Does it Matter if You Attend a Top-Ranked Institution?

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2019, College Affordability, Financial Aid, Research/Policy, ROI/College Outcomes

The Problem with Loan Forgiveness

By Dr. Watson Scott Swail, President & Senior Research Scholar, Educational Policy Institute Last week, Presidential nominee and Senator Elizabeth Warren called for the cancellation of student loan debt for 42 million borrowers. According to an article by InsideHigherEd.com, this would result in cancelation of $50,000 of loan debt for former students who incomes are less than $100,000 and even provide forgiveness for those with incomes up … Continue reading The Problem with Loan Forgiveness

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2019, Politics, Research/Policy

You Can’t Handle the Truth! When High Profile TV-Types Get the Story Wrong on Education and the Workforce

By Watson Scott Swail, President & Senior Research Scientist, Educational Policy InstituteListen to today’s Swail Letter on iTunes and Soundcloud. I keep a TV on in the office on most days, switching channels depending on the discussion at hand, typically leaving it in mute and sometimes switching to the NHL Channel for a few minutes. Everyone has their vices. Mine are politics and hockey. Yesterday, I was … Continue reading You Can’t Handle the Truth! When High Profile TV-Types Get the Story Wrong on Education and the Workforce

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2018, College Affordability, Financial Aid, Research/Policy

You Can Pay Me Now, or Pay Me Later.

By Watson Scott Swail, President & Senior Research Scholar, Educational Policy Institute Back in 1971, the FRAM oil filter company introduced what would become a very popular commercial on TV that ended with this tag line: “You can pay me now, or pay me later.” The meaning being that the cost of a $10 oil filter could save you hundreds or thousands of dollars down the road. … Continue reading You Can Pay Me Now, or Pay Me Later.

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2018, Research/Policy

The Higher Education Machine

By Watson Scott Swail, President & Senior Research Scholar, Educational Policy Institute   I receive emails and have emails forwarded to me of the many companies that provide consulting services to higher education. As a disclaimer, EPI provides consulting as well, mostly through my personal keynotes and workshops at institutions. However, the sheer scale of the third-party vendor arena is mindnumbing. Literally thousands of companies are … Continue reading The Higher Education Machine

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