When you stop giving points for snob appeal, the truly excellent ones shine through. Plus, our first-of-its-kind ranking of the best colleges for rural America.
college affordability
Posted inCollege Guide
A Radically Simple Plan to Fix Higher Education
Voters couldn’t be clearer in their demand for greater affordability, with college costs near the top of their list. Here’s how to deliver it.
Posted inHigher Education
The Case for Lesser-Known Colleges
The premium on prestigious colleges is wildly overrated. I should know.
Posted inHigher Education
Higher Ed’s Affordability Problem Isn’t Just the Price
New survey data suggests that more Americans might see the value of a degree if schools simplified their pricing systems.
Posted inHigher Education
Confusing Financial Aid Offers Can Leave Families Deeper in Debt. Student Groups Say a New Legislative Fix Doesn’t Go Far Enough
Colleges lobbied to kill a requirement that they use a uniform financial aid offer letter to help families easily compare costs.
Posted inHigher Education
Graduate Loans Should Reflect Graduate Earnings
Scrapping unlimited Grad PLUS borrowing was a start. Now federal loan policy should align debt limits with what graduates in a given field are likely to earn.
Posted inPodcast
Borrowing for College Is About to Become Even More Confusing
Higher education finance expert Sandy Baum explains what the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” means for student borrowers. Medical students and many middle-class parents could be in for a shock.
Posted inPodcast
Berea: The Little College That Could
The President of Kentucky’s Berea College talks about the factors that put her school at the top of the Washington Monthly’s 2025 College Ranking.
Posted inSeptember/October 2023
A Different Kind of College Ranking
America needs a new definition of higher education excellence, one that measures what colleges do for their country, instead of for themselves.
Posted inSeptember/October 2023
When Colleges Apply to Students
An emerging university admissions system is helping underprivileged applicants by reversing the traditional process.
