Resources

Higher Learning Advocates’ federal policy resources include the most current data on adult students, parenting students, college affordability, equity, and more. Our work has resulted in positive change for today’s students, including access to discounted broadband for Pell students, the establishment of emergency aid funds, and increased financial aid for parenting students.

Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Backgrounder

Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) is a federal provision that requires institutions to establish criteria a student must meet in order to remain eligible for federal student aid, such as Pell Grants and student loans. Typically, to meet SAP requirements, students must meet a minimum grade point average (GPA), or its equivalent, and complete a minimum…
Learn More

Online Program Managers (OPMs) Backgrounder

Online program management (OPM) entities are service providers that work through contracts with colleges and universities to take academic programs online. While most OPMs are for-profit, some are nonprofit. Typically, colleges and universities that utilize OPMs seek to expand access to college courses that they cannot financially or practically offer via a traditional physical environment,…
Learn More

Today’s Students Returning Adults Factsheet

Adult students make up a growing share of today’s students, including adults returning to school, who are likely to be in their late 20s or 30s.  View the factsheet here.
Learn More
Policy Toolkit 3.0

Policy Toolkit 3.0

Today’s students are more diverse than any previous generation of college students: they’re diverse in age, race, and income level. They’re more mobile and may not live on campus. Most participate in the workforce, either full-time or part-time. Work and family responsibilities beyond the classroom—whether that is on-campus or online—often compete with the educational goals…
Learn More
SAP Reset Infographic

SAP Reset Infographic

In order to access federal financial aid to pay for higher education, students must meet Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) requirements, which require credit completion and GPA minimums. For some returning adult students who reenter higher education after a poor academic performance in the past, SAP requirements can be a significant barrier to earning the degree…
Learn More

Gainful Employment 101

Is higher education worth the investment? While some factors—the cost of attendance and time to earn a degree or credential—are clear, the outcomes students can expect after completing higher learning programs are difficult to determine. Gainful employment is one tool that, if implemented properly, would allow potential students access to the information they need to…
Learn More

#SupportStudentParents Student Videos

To learn more about the barriers that student parents face and the policy changes that could better support them, check out these videos from two student parents:
Learn More
Ensuring Quality of Online Education Programs

Ensuring Quality of Online Education Programs

In spring 2020, as the coronavirus pandemic swept across the country, colleges and universities swiftly shuttered their campuses to students, unsure of for how long or what was coming next. As faculty scrambled to continue their courses virtually, they utilized emergency remote learning to deliver course content like lectures and seminars, facilitated online assessments, and…
Learn More

State Profiles

State profiles feature key data points, visual infographics, and brief explanations of all 50 states, and are a quick and easy resource for policymakers, analysts and media.

Find Your State