One of the nation's leading providers of online education degrees supports Georgetown University group's report recommending disclosure of earnings premium and debt-to-earnings statistics and calls for five-year freeze in graduate program tuition.
INDIANAPOLIS, IN / ACCESSWIRE / October 22, 2024 / A new report from a respected Georgetown University research group finds that the cost of attaining graduate degrees - a virtual necessity for teachers' career advancement - can actually make pursuing degrees financially risky. American College of Education, one of the country's top providers of accredited online graduate degrees, endorses the report's call for greater transparency on loan debt and return on investment and calls on graduate programs nationwide to significantly reduce tuition costs.
American College of Education (ACE), founded in 2005, offers more than 60 accredited doctoral, specialist, master's and bachelor's degrees and graduate-level certificate programs. ACE is ranked third in the United States for the number of master's degrees in education conferred. ACE is known for its affordability, with no tuition increases since 2016 and with 86% of its students graduating with no debt.
The affordability of graduate education is the subject of the Georgetown report, "Graduate Degrees: Risky and Unequal Paths to the Top". It documents how the cost of attaining a graduate degree has more than tripled over the past 20 years, and the median debt principal incurred by students has risen more than 50%, from $34,000 to $50,000. The study also shows that while students with graduate degrees in education earn 30% more overall than those with only a bachelor's degree, rising tuition costs and loan repayments are eroding the earnings advantage.
"Some graduate programs leave completers with debt that they cannot reasonably repay from their earnings. When borrowers can't repay their loans, taxpayers often pick up the remainder of the tab," said the authors, researchers at the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce.
This is particularly problematic in the field of education, where teachers generally need advanced degrees to achieve higher pay, better jobs or, in three states, simply to stay in the profession. American colleges award about 150,000 master's degrees in education a year, and about 5.6 million education jobs will require a graduate degree by 2031, the authors said.
To protect students and maintain the value of a graduate degree, the researchers recommend new regulations that would require graduate programs to disclose their return on investment and the debt burden they create. Specifically, the Georgetown researchers propose an "in-field earnings premium test," comparing the earnings of workers with graduate degrees to those without them, and a "debt-to-earnings test," examining degree recipients' federal loan payments in relation to their earnings.
Graduate programs would be required to notify prospective students of their performance on those tests and would need to meet performance standards for their students to be eligible for federal loan programs.
ACE endorses the report's recommendations. The in-field earnings premium test would ensure education professionals and employers achieve significant ROI on their investment in a graduate degree. The debt-to-earnings test would help educators reduce or even avoid the crushing burden of student loans.
"ACE's endorsement of the 'in-field earnings premium test' is crucial for education professionals seeking real returns on their graduate degree investments. Alongside the 'debt to earnings test,' these steps provide a much-needed pathway to reduce student loan burdens and make advanced education more accessible to educators," said Geordie Hyland, president and CEO of American College of Education.
An independent study by economists at labor market analysis firm Lightcast found a return of $19.20 in increased future earnings for every dollar a student invests in their education at ACE. This amounts to an average annual rate of return of 120.7%.
ACE also urges graduate schools to support education professionals by significantly reducing tuition costs - without compromising quality - by eliminating non-value add costs and using technology when possible. ACE, which has frozen its tuition costs for the last eight years, calls on graduate schools to freeze tuition for at least the next five years while assessing costs of delivery.
"ACE calls for graduate schools to reduce tuition without compromising quality. Focusing on teaching and learning, leveraging technology, and eliminating non-essential costs will make education more affordable," Hyland said. "Freezing tuition for five years is a smart, proactive move toward a sustainable and equitable model for higher education."
ACE also improves affordability by choosing not to participate in federal Title IV financial aid programs, which reduces operational costs and reduces costs to students. The college also has a team dedicated to evaluating credit for prior learning (CPL) and extensive professional development content partnerships, which help students decrease the duration and cost of their program.
Hyland will discuss ACE's model of success in an upcoming The Future of Education podcast.
ACE has an 85% graduation rate, with 11,000 students and 44,000 alumni, and is ranked third in the United States for the most master's degrees in education. 92% of ACE's students agree or strongly agree that they are satisfied with their ACE experience. More information on student outcomes is available at the ACE "Student Right to Know" at https://ace.edu/about/student-right-to-know/.
For more information, please visit http://ace.edu/.
About American College of Education
American College of Education (ACE) is an accredited, fully online college specializing in high-quality, affordable programs in education, business, leadership, healthcare and nursing. Headquartered in Indianapolis, ACE offers more than 60 innovative and engaging programs for adult students to pursue a doctorate, specialist, master's or bachelor's degree, along with graduate-level certificate programs.
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SOURCE: American College of Education
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