Those who are looking for a college face a difficult task. It’s easy to make a poor choice — one that might be regretted for a long time. Information is key.
Colleges keep what’s called a Common Data Set (CDS) that can be very helpful in making that decision. But, as Dan Way points out in today’s Martin Center article, not all schools are equally good at making a CDS available to the public. He writes, “Colleges’ tuition costs are easy enough to find, but not every student pays list price. Education experts agree that data about so-called discount rates could be an invaluable tool for parents and prospective students seeking the best and most affordable fit for their higher-education pursuits. But the facts and figures in question are buried treasure, if they are available at all, on many institutional websites. These troves, known as the Common Data Set (CDS), should be widely distributed for the sake of prospective higher-ed consumers.”
Looking at North Carolina, Way finds that most of the public schools are good about making CDS available, while only some of the private schools are.
Apparently, officials at some institutions would rather that students not be able to find out how much of a discount others have gotten.
Way concludes, “Possessing Common Data Set information would place parents and students in a much better bargaining position. Thus, universities should make their data freely available.”