For high school students comparing prospective college choices, data on the percentage of students who can repay their loans or get jobs after graduation can be useful to a final decision. This year, the Association of Big Ten Students, which includes members of the IU Student Association, has focused their efforts on making this data freely available to all students.
The Student Right to Know Before You Go Act of 2015 would modify the Higher Education Act of 1965 and require schools that receive Title IV funding to submit more detailed reports to the Department of Education. Universities would have to include information such as loan repayments, transfer rates and rates of continuation to higher education. The data would be compiled and available to students making choices about college enrollment.
“With the Congressional change that’s happening, I think a lot of college students realize it’s something that affects them and it’s something they should change,” said Alex Wisniewski, Chief of State and Legislative Affairs for IUSA.
Opponents to the bill cite student privacy, saying that the publication of detailed student data is an invasion of individual privacy and should not be mandatory for students seeking higher education. The data would reach into most aspects of a student’s academic and financial life, and universities continue to collect data after graduation, but ABTS members at IU say these concerns are unfounded, as data is collective rather than individual.
“I don’t think it would be to the point where they would be ‘Wow, that’s my data,’” said Wisniewski. “It’s more like, ‘English majors from IU have a starting salary of blank.’”
Molly Connor, conference coordinator for ABTS, said the goal of the bill is to analyze collective trends and individual data would be protected under the law.
“It’s more aggregate numbers, rather than pulling out one specific student, so we can make better calculations like average student loan debt from certain universities or certain majors,” she said.
In addition to launching grassroots letter-writing campaigns and contacting Congressional members directly, students in favor of the bill consult with Doug Wasitis, IU’s federal lobbyist, in order to gauge the political climate and predict when the bill might be passed quickly. With the results of the presidential and Congressional elections, Wisniewski said the bill’s fate in a largely Republican Congress is unknown.
The passage of the bill would benefit those currently enrolled as well as prospective students. With more detailed major information available, undecided students would have better resources, and those taking out loans could chart a repayment plan.
“I think it’s data that would have helped me when I was looking for college, and it’s still data that I would use in college,” said Wisniewski.
Students who support the bill and want to get involved can contact their Congressional members directly in order to influence their vote.
“If a student sees an issue that they’re passionate about, your legislators and their staff are just a phone call away to share your thoughts,” Connor said. “A lot of people actually do care about what we think, so just get out and share your opinion and make your voice heard.”
