Meet us in the Middle: Affordability for the Working Student is a report produced by the Student Debt Reduction Working Group that offers recommendations to stakeholders in higher education, e.g. UW administrators and state legislators. You can read the report by clicking here, or just look at the main takeaways below:

Establish a consistent “expected student contribution” to the cost of education that makes it possible to work through school
Expected student contribution is a concept that represents the amount that a student is expected to contribute to their education after their family contribution (EFC), grants, and scholarships are accounted for. Expected student contribution is often what a student makes through a combination of loans and working. Expected student contribution varies widely across income groups, from anywhere between about $4,000 to over $15,000.

We believe expected student contribution should not exceed the amount a student can earn by working (20 hrs per week during the academic year and 40 hrs during the summer). We tie affordability to “workability” because we believe no student should be forced into tens of thousands of dollars of debt, especially when they are working. Currently, a student whose family makes around $80,000 per year receives no grant aid. Even after their family contributes $12,000 or so as calculated by the FAFSA, this student would be left to come up with around $15,000 every year. If they take out only loans, that’s $60,000 of debt over four years. Even if this student worked consistently and was able to earn around $10,000 per year to contribute towards their education, they still wouldn’t be able to avoid $20,000 of student debt. We do not think that is fair or sustainable for the students of Washington State.

Modify state and institutional reporting requirements to ensure a complete picture of the effectiveness of financial aid
Currently, the University and other educational organizations (e.g. the Washington Student Achievement Council) are required to report to the Washington State Legislature on the impact of tuition on three different income brackets: families making less than 75% of the median family income (MFI), 75%-125% of MFI, and above 125% MFI. As a result, we found that the most recent Council of Presidents report on financial aid outcomes did not give a clear enough picture of the impact of tuition on each income group, as family incomes of $70,000 and above were all grouped together. Families who can afford the full cost of attendance were grouped together with families at the lower end of the range who struggle to pay for the full cost of education.

Expanding reporting requirements beyond the three current groups will give the Legislature a clearer picture of how tuition increases have affected middle-income families.

Bridge the gap between financial aid and financial aid literacy
We found the most consistent issues in understanding loan terms. 48% of the loan-taking students that responded to our survey indicated they are not confident in their knowledge of the loan repayment process. National data suggests that 65% of high-debt student borrowers were “shocked or surprised” by some aspect of their student loans upon graduation.

We recommend targeting improved understanding of loan terms, loan repayment, and the difference between federal and private loans as goals for financial aid literacy programs.