04-23-2018, 07:47 PM
Hello Everyone –
Given that the StraighterLine financial aid pathway is new and unusual, we figured we’d weigh in with some insight and details. As most of you know, StraighterLine is not a college. Therefore, StraighterLine students must pay out of pocket and cannot use federal financial aid. For students that can’t afford to pay out of pocket, they must enroll at a traditional college with higher prices using financial aid. However, given the continued growth of students (like all those in this forum) using course providers like StraighterLine, some in the federal Department of Education are trying to change higher education policy to enable students to use financial aid for providers like StraighterLine. As you might imagine, changing federal higher education policy is easier said than done, so the result is a Department of Education experimental program called EQUIP.
For this particular program, the Department of Education treats the college as outsourcing some of its coursework to the non-college course provider (StraighterLine), but still requires the student to be technically enrolled at the college to be eligible for financial aid. As now, however, students in the program may transfer completed StraighterLine courses to a different college and degree program when they are ready.
Because the EQUIP program requires the student to enroll at the college (not StraighterLine), the college sets the tuition and the courses adhere to the college’s calendar. The program is more expensive to deliver because the college incurs real costs to administer financial aid. Also, these courses will have more – and more expensive – substantive interaction than required in our $99 a month offering. Dallas County Community College District (DCCCD) has set tuition close to its out-of-state tuition rate.
We recognize that the price of StraighterLine courses through the EQUIP program is more expensive than on our website and the college’s fixed calendar is less convenient than our typical self-paced monthly subscription. While not yet matching up with our current model as much as we would like, it’s an important first step. Especially as it enables those who otherwise would not be able to enroll in StraighterLine to use Pell grants to do so.
In the future, the price should come down (though still more than our $99 a month subscription because of the added costs of delivery), and we hope to make the self-paced monthly subscription an option. Keep an eye out for more programs like this in the coming months. Thanks to this community for helping to force policymakers to take steps (even if they are baby steps) to make higher education more affordable.
Sincerely,
Burck Smith
CEO & Founder
StraghterLine
Given that the StraighterLine financial aid pathway is new and unusual, we figured we’d weigh in with some insight and details. As most of you know, StraighterLine is not a college. Therefore, StraighterLine students must pay out of pocket and cannot use federal financial aid. For students that can’t afford to pay out of pocket, they must enroll at a traditional college with higher prices using financial aid. However, given the continued growth of students (like all those in this forum) using course providers like StraighterLine, some in the federal Department of Education are trying to change higher education policy to enable students to use financial aid for providers like StraighterLine. As you might imagine, changing federal higher education policy is easier said than done, so the result is a Department of Education experimental program called EQUIP.
For this particular program, the Department of Education treats the college as outsourcing some of its coursework to the non-college course provider (StraighterLine), but still requires the student to be technically enrolled at the college to be eligible for financial aid. As now, however, students in the program may transfer completed StraighterLine courses to a different college and degree program when they are ready.
Because the EQUIP program requires the student to enroll at the college (not StraighterLine), the college sets the tuition and the courses adhere to the college’s calendar. The program is more expensive to deliver because the college incurs real costs to administer financial aid. Also, these courses will have more – and more expensive – substantive interaction than required in our $99 a month offering. Dallas County Community College District (DCCCD) has set tuition close to its out-of-state tuition rate.
We recognize that the price of StraighterLine courses through the EQUIP program is more expensive than on our website and the college’s fixed calendar is less convenient than our typical self-paced monthly subscription. While not yet matching up with our current model as much as we would like, it’s an important first step. Especially as it enables those who otherwise would not be able to enroll in StraighterLine to use Pell grants to do so.
In the future, the price should come down (though still more than our $99 a month subscription because of the added costs of delivery), and we hope to make the self-paced monthly subscription an option. Keep an eye out for more programs like this in the coming months. Thanks to this community for helping to force policymakers to take steps (even if they are baby steps) to make higher education more affordable.
Sincerely,
Burck Smith
CEO & Founder
StraghterLine
![[-]](https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/images/collapse.png)