A new report finds room for improvement in the net-price calculators some colleges are posting on their websites.
Under federal law, colleges have until Oct. 29 to publish net-price calculators, which give students an idea of the actual cost of attending the college once financial aid is taken into account.
The report by the Institute for College Access & Success looks at some early attempts to comply with the forthcoming mandate. The Oakland, Calif.-based group found that some colleges buried net-price calculators in obscure parts of their website. Others asked up to 50 questions and required extensive financial and tax information from students, and some calculators provided misleading impressions of affordability.
The report also gives recommendations on what colleges and universities can do to remedy the problem.
