From 2006–07 to 2009–10, the percentage of first-time, full-time undergraduates receiving any financial aid increased from 75 to 85 percent at 4-year institutions.
Grants and loans are the major forms of federal financial aid for degree-seeking undergraduate students. Federal grants, which do not need to be repaid, are available to degree-seeking undergraduates who qualify by economic need, whereas loans are available to all students. In addition to federal financial aid, there are also grants from state and local governments, institutions, and private sources.
From 2006–07 to 2009–10, the percentage of first-time, full-time undergraduate students receiving any financial aid increased from 75 to 85 percent at 4-year institutions (see table A-41-2). During this time, the largest increase in first-time, full-time students receiving aid was at 4-year private for-profit institutions, from 55 to 92 percent. The percentage of first-time, full-time undergraduate students receiving aid at public 4-year institutions increased from 75 to 82 percent, while 4-year private nonprofit institutions had a smaller increase, from 85 to 89 percent. For 2-year institutions, the percentage of first-time, full-time undergraduate students receiving aid was higher in 2009–10 than in 2006–07 in all institutions except private for-profit institutions, in which the percentage receiving aid in 2009–10 (88 percent) was less than in 2006–07 (89 percent).
In 2009–10, about 67 percent of first-time, full-time undergraduate students at public 4-year institutions received grant or scholarship aid, as compared to 84 percent in private nonprofit institutions and 81 percent in private for-profit institutions (see table A-41-1). Out of all 4-year institutions, the percentage of first-time, full-time undergraduate students receiving student loan aid was highest at private for-profit institutions (86 percent). In comparison, 63 percent of 4-year nonprofit students and 50 percent of 4-year public students received student loan aid.
For first-time, full-time undergraduate students at 2-year institutions in 2009–10, 67 percent received grant or scholarship aid and 39 percentage received student loan aid. As in 4-year institutions, the percent of first-time, full-time undergraduate students receiving student loan aid at 2-year institutions was highest at private for-profit institutions (78 percent). By comparison, 59 percent of students at 2-year private nonprofit institutions and 24 percent of students at 2-year public institutions received student loan aid. The percentage of first-time, full-time undergraduate students at 2-year institutions receiving grant or scholarship aid was highest at private nonprofit institutions (85 percent).
In 2009–10, in 4-year institutions, the average amount of student loan aid received was highest in private for-profit institutions ($9,641). First-time, full-time undergraduate students at 4-year private nonprofit institutions received an average amount of $7,466, and students at 4-year public institutions received an average amount of $6,063 in student loan aid. Similarly, among 2-year institutions, the average amount of student loan aid received was highest in private for-profit institutions ($8,035).
Technical Notes
Any student financial aid includes students receiving Federal Work-Study aid and aid from other sources in addition to those listed in table A-41-1. Discontinuity in the time series could be due to a change in the structure of the reporting forms. For more information on the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), see Appendix B – Guide to Sources.
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