Academically gifted students tend to gravitate toward higher cost programs and benefit from out-sized merit awards, bringing what they pay down substantially.

It's a question we hear frequently. As hard as they’ve tried, new student numbers steadily decline while tuition discounting eclipses price increases. Budgeting is an annual ritual of optimistic projections in the spring followed by reactive cost cuts the following fall. Student to faculty ratios decline. Maintenance is deferred. There is a pall over the campus. I […]

The conversation about the level of financial aid needed to bring in next fall’s incoming class is an interesting one.  Typically, it is a tug of war between those who are trying to recruit as many as possible and those who are tasked with making the budget balance.  Leveraging firms propose what they believe is […]

In a day of reduced student demand, a number of colleges have turned to their athletic programs to help fill a portion of excess capacity.  The idea is that an additional student paying anything is better than no student at all. At the outset, let me say that this strategy can be helpful within the […]

Some have asked whether certain expense and revenue relationships typify the successful institution. Here are six I have gleaned from working with a variety of clients: Salaries and benefits should not exceed 80% of net tuition revenue. Direct instructional salary and benefits should not exceed 35% of net tuition. Spending on institutional advancement should not exceed […]

The first week of August is upon us and whatever will betide the fall is becoming more clear. What are some of my clients doing around this time? Well, first of all, the deadline for finalizing payment for the fall often occurs this week. I have suggested a deadline of August 5th through 9th as […]

When I was in the corporate world, it was common for one of the top sales people to make the most of anyone in the organization.  Sometimes, the heavy hitters, festooned with gray hair an a rolodex full of “friends” made more than the CEO.  The reason is simple; without sales, the organization fails.  Without good margins on those sales, […]

Off campus programs (OCP) may have waned a little in popularity in the past few years but spending a semester abroad remains a draw for a number of students, especially those who are stronger academically.  Unique and high-quality programs are a distinctive that may be of great benefit, particularly to an institution with softening demand. The problem? They are […]

Our discount rate is only off by three percent.  That’s not too bad, is it? Well, I hate to spoil a good theory with some facts but the math tells a different story. Let’s presume that Solvay College had budgeted to recruit 240 first time students and charges $25,000 per year in tuition.  Tuition discounts (financial aid in the […]