Notes in the Margins: amenities, drinking and the Common Application

Obama Dismisses Need For College Amenities On Monday President Obama reviewed some familiar policies his administration has offered to make higher education more affordable: changing the structure of federal student loans, tripling investment in college tax credits and increasing Pell Grant awards. But he raised a new objection to another culprit of high tuition costs: amenities. "You're not going to a university to join a spa; you're going there to learn so that you can have a fulfilling career," Obama said. (universitybusiness.com)

Everest College Grads Sue, Alleging Fraud Chelsi Miller says she amassed $45,000 in debt to earn a surgical technologist degree from the for-profit Everest College in 2008 in the hopes of transferring to the University of Utah, only to find few schools accept Everest credits. (universitybusiness.com)

Does Drinking During College Lead to Lower Grades? A recent paper concludes that "drinking causes significant reductions in academic performance, particularly for the highest-performing students. This suggests that the negative consequences of alcohol consumption extend beyond the narrow segment of the population at risk of more severe, low-frequency, outcomes." (Daily Finance)

CUNY, IBM to open high school-college hybrid The City University of New York and IBM will open a unique school that merges high school with two years of college, allowing students to earn an associate's degree. (USA Today)

Census: Women closing in on male-dominated fields The gender gap in fields once dominated by men is narrowing, with younger women accounting for nearly half of science and business grads. (USA Today)

For-profit colleges under fire over value, accreditation As the topic heats up in Washington, more than 1,000 students are expected to converge on Capitol Hill today in support of for-profit colleges. But for others, the problems with for-profits start with concern about accreditation, a coveted assurance of educational quality. (USA Today)

For Georgetown dean, Common Application is part of a larger admissions problem To Charlie Deacon, gatekeeper at Georgetown University for the past 38 years, the Common Application is part of a larger problem: the admissions bubble, a geometric expansion of college applications that he likens to the millennial housing market, in an admissions industry that increasingly resembles big business. (The Washington Post)

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