Research

The Sallie Mae Fund is committed to opening the doors of education opportunity as wide as possible. Through nationwide surveys of students and families, in partnership with leading educational and scientific organizations, The Fund gathers critical information about how best to accomplish that goal. This research allows The Fund to tailor outreach programs to the needs of different communities.

Institute for Higher Education Policy

In 2007, the Institute for Higher Education Policy, with support from The Fund, conducted a first-of-its-kind national survey of the parents of middle school students. The research found that while nine out of 10 parents expect to watch their child walk across a stage to receive a college degree, many moms and dads aren't doing all they can to make that dream a reality. In fact, nearly half of all parents of middle schoolers have not started planning for college and nearly two-thirds have not started saving. Read more

Tomás Rivera Policy Institute

In 2004, The Sallie Mae Fund commissioned a study on Latinos and financial aid, conducted by the Tomás Rivera Policy Institute at the University of Southern California. The research revealed that awareness of financial aid options is critically lacking in the Latino community and that this lack of awareness has a direct impact on college attendance. Read more.

United Negro College Fund

College enrollment and graduation rates among African-American students continue to lag behind the population at large, and this gap has increased by one third since 1980. To help gain insight into this trend, in 2005, the United Negro College Fund's (UNCF's) Patterson Institute, commissioned by The Sallie Mae Fund, conducted a survey of African-American students and parents in five cities nationwide concerning their preparation for college. The research showed that African-American families have high aspirations for college but do not know enough about how to pay for it. Read more.

Harris Interactive

In 2002, The Sallie Mae Fund commissioned Harris Interactive® to conduct a survey of 1,090 parents of 18- to 24-year-olds and 811 young adults age 18 to 24 to determine what information they have about paying for college and how that information affects decisions about attending college.

The survey found:

  • Those who have the greatest need for information about college financial aid—lower income and minority families—have the least information about how to pay for college.
  • The more information prospective college students and their families have about financial aid—and the earlier they get this information—the more likely they are to attend college.
  • There is a significant information divide between what is needed and what is available to America's lower income and minority families. Read more.