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Changing Face Of College A project that looks at the challenges and triumphs that today's college students are living.
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Changing Face Of College

'First-Gen' Proud: Campuses Are Celebrating An Overlooked Group. But Is That Enough?
Ryan Johnson for NPR

'First-Gen' Proud: Campuses Are Celebrating An Overlooked Group. But Is That Enough?

With T-shirts, pins and posters, campuses are drawing attention to first-generation students. The next step, experts say, is to actually give those students the knowledge and support they need.

'First-Gen' Proud: Campuses Are Celebrating An Overlooked Group. But Is That Enough?

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Vital Federal Program To Help Parents In College Is 'A Drop In The Bucket'
Nicole Xu for NPR

Vital Federal Program To Help Parents In College Is 'A Drop In The Bucket'

About 1 in 5 college students in the U.S. are raising kids, and one of their biggest challenges is getting child care. A new proposal in Congress would expand the only federal program that helps.

Vital Federal Program To Help Parents In College Is 'A Drop In The Bucket'

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Colleges Could Do More To Help Student Parents Pay For Child Care, Watchdog Says
LA Johnson/NPR

Colleges Could Do More To Help Student Parents Pay For Child Care, Watchdog Says

More than 1 in 5 college students are raising kids, and access to child care is one of their biggest barriers. A new report finds many don't know they can apply for help from federal financial aid.

Colleges Could Do More To Help Student Parents Pay For Child Care, Watchdog Says

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'I'm Drowning': Those Hit Hardest By Student Loan Debt Never Finished College
LA Johnson/NPR

'I'm Drowning': Those Hit Hardest By Student Loan Debt Never Finished College

Some of the people struggling the most to pay back their debt are the millions of students who took out student loans but never finished a degree.

'I'm Drowning': Those Hit Hardest By Student Loan Debt Never Finished College

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These Are The People Struggling The Most To Pay Back Student Loans
Hanna Barczyk for NPR

These Are The People Struggling The Most To Pay Back Student Loans

Some borrowers default on their student loans at much higher rates than others — and they're not the borrowers with the highest debt.

These Are The People Struggling The Most To Pay Back Student Loans

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'Do They Kick Out Pregnant People?' Navigating College With Kids

"It motivated me more to finish," Parks says, reflecting on college life with Caleb. "It wasn't like, 'oh man he's gonna slow me down.' I don't want him to feel like he held me back from anything, because he didn't." Elissa Nadworny/NPR hide caption

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Elissa Nadworny/NPR

'Do They Kick Out Pregnant People?' Navigating College With Kids

Nearly 4 million college students are raising children — a fifth of all undergraduates. They have better grades than their peers without kids but are less likely to graduate. What can schools do?

'Do They Kick Out Pregnant People?' Navigating College With Kids

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Congress Considers Making College More Accessible To People In Prison
LA Johnson/NPR

Congress Considers Making College More Accessible To People In Prison

A bipartisan group of lawmakers across the House and the Senate introduced a bill that would allow people in prison access to federal Pell grants to pay for college.

Congress Considers Making College More Accessible To People In Prison

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Confused By Your College Financial Aid Letter? You're Not Alone

McKenna Hensley got into 10 colleges — each with its own distinctive financial aid offer. "It was very confusing," she says. "It makes a difference when you're paying yourself. You have to be extra careful." Elissa Nadworny/NPR hide caption

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Elissa Nadworny/NPR

Confused By Your College Financial Aid Letter? You're Not Alone

Financial aid offer letters look vastly different from one school to the next, and it isn't always clear how much students will have to pay. "It's really the Wild West," one expert says.

Confused By Your College Financial Aid Letter? You're Not Alone

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Even When College Is Free, It Can Be Hard For Adults To Stay In School
Yifan Wu for NPR

Even When College Is Free, It Can Be Hard For Adults To Stay In School

WPLN News

Tennessee Reconnect has helped thousands of adults afford a college education, but for many older students, the financial support may not be enough to get them to the finish line.

Even When College Is Free, It Can Be Hard For Adults To Stay In School

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'I Need A Degree In Order To Move Forward': Why Some Adults Choose College

For some older college students, studying later in life has its advantages: They have skills and tools that could only have come with age and maturity. (Clockwise from top left: Santa Benavidez Ramirez, Liz Bracken, Taryn Jim, Matt Seo, Sakeenah Shakir, Jarrell Harris) NPR hide caption

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NPR

'I Need A Degree In Order To Move Forward': Why Some Adults Choose College

About 7.6 million adults 25 and over attended college in 2018. Among them are a mother of four, a Navy vet and a grandmother finishing what she started more than four decades ago.

Resume Issues? Need An Internship? This Organization Can Help

Kelcei Williams says Year Up helped her realize that her previous jobs actually gave her a bunch of transferable skills. She's a team leader. She learns fast. And she can solve problems on the spot. Amr Alfiky/NPR hide caption

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Amr Alfiky/NPR

Resume Issues? Need An Internship? This Organization Can Help

The nonprofit Year Up connects community college students with internships — and gives them vital skills along the way.

Resume Issues? Need An Internship? This Organization Can Help

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'Going To Office Hours Is Terrifying' And Other Tales Of Rural Students In College

When Kendra Beaudoin first got to the University of Michigan campus, she didn't understand crosswalks: "Those don't exist where I lived." Diane Weiss for The Hechinger Report hide caption

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Diane Weiss for The Hechinger Report

'Going To Office Hours Is Terrifying' And Other Tales Of Rural Students In College

Hechinger Report

Some colleges are extending scholarships and other help to rural high school grads. They see benefits to diversity — and their own bottom lines — in having rural students on their campuses.

'Going To Office Hours Is Terrifying' And Other Tales Of Rural Students In College

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Inside The Effort To Give Inmates Access To Federal Student Grants For College
LA Johnson/NPR

Inside The Effort To Give Inmates Access To Federal Student Grants For College

Inmates are among the least educated people in America, but few prisons offer opportunities beyond a GED. What if people behind bars had access to federal money to help pay for college?

Inside The Effort To Give Inmates Access To Federal Student Grants For College

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Getting A College Degree When You're Behind Bars
LA Johnson/NPR

Comics

Getting A College Degree When You're Behind Bars

Inmates are among the least educated people in America, but few prisons offer opportunities beyond a GED. What if people behind bars had access to federal money to help pay for college?

Getting A College Degree When You're Behind Bars

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Top Colleges Seeking Diversity From A New Source: Transfer Students
Scott Bakal for NPR

Top Colleges Seeking Diversity From A New Source: Transfer Students

This fall, Princeton University admitted its first transfer students in nearly three decades. And they're not the only elite schools looking to community colleges and military bases to recruit.

Top Colleges Seeking Diversity From A New Source: Transfer Students

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Michael Bloomberg Gives $1.8 Billion To Financial Aid At Johns Hopkins University

Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is donating $1.8 billion to his alma mater to help students with financial aid. Monica Schipper/Getty Images hide caption

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Monica Schipper/Getty Images

Michael Bloomberg Gives $1.8 Billion To Financial Aid At Johns Hopkins University

The donation is the largest individual gift ever made to a single university and is designed to allow the school to be need-blind and loan-free.

Michael Bloomberg Gives $1.8 Billion To Financial Aid At Johns Hopkins University

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