NEW YORK, Nov. 25 (Xinhua) -- Dozens of private colleges across the United States have slashed prices in recent years to draw more students, which, described as tuition "resets," showed that these struggling institutions are making the moves in response to families increasingly questioning the value of high-cost degrees from anywhere except the most elite universities, said Bloomberg News on Monday.
The markdowns "highlight a fault line across higher education," said the report. "While Ivy League universities and other elite schools approach 100,000 U.S. dollars per year, a growing share of smaller, less selective private institutions are cutting costs in a bid to avoid joining the dozens of peers shutting their campus gates for good."
One case in point is Bethel University in St. Paul, Minnesota, which downsizes its price tag from 44,050 dollars to 25,990 dollars. The early results are promising. It enrolled nearly 500 new students this year and has seen 40 percent more visits compared to the same time last year. Attendance doubled at the college's three most recent recruiting events.
The value proposition of higher education has been challenged, noted the report. "Schools that are not thinking about how they can better serve their local communities and be affordable and accessible are not positioning themselves well for the future."
However, "it's a risky strategy," Phillip Levine, an economist at Wellesley College, was quoted as saying. Schools set prices high because it signals selectivity and quality, then flatter applicants by reducing costs with merit aid packages, he said. "If you cut the sticker price to 50,000 and give up the merit, you just lost those advantages." ■
