How to Design a Successful Free College Program

"Students fare best in generous, flexible promise programs with less stringent eligibility requirements and more robust advising. First-dollar programs have extra benefits for low-income students because students who receive Pell Grants can use the federal aid to pay for textbooks, room and board, and other college costs if local or state promise programs fully cover tuition."

"Only 2 percent of all students—and fewer than 5 percent of low-income students—pay no out-of-pocket costs for college. And those expenses outside of tuition make up 38 percent of a low-income family's earnings on average, making first-dollar programs particularly impactful for addressing affordability barriers."

"The Kalamazoo Promise Scholarship, a first-dollar program in Michigan, found an eight-percentage-point increase in immediate college enrollment and a 10-percentage-point jump in six-year credential attainment after the introduction of the program, demonstrating measurable success of well-designed promise initiatives."

Over 200 state and local free college programs operate across the United States, with significant expansion between 2014-2019 and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Research from the Brookings Institution reveals that program design critically affects student success. Approximately one-third of first-year college students pay no tuition after aid, including 58 percent of low-income students. However, first-dollar programs outperform last-dollar programs because they allow students to use federal Pell Grants for textbooks, room and board, and other expenses beyond tuition. Since non-tuition costs represent 38 percent of low-income families' earnings, this flexibility proves essential. Only 2 percent of all students pay zero out-of-pocket college costs. The Kalamazoo Promise Scholarship, a first-dollar program, demonstrated an eight-percentage-point increase in immediate college enrollment and a ten-percentage-point increase in six-year credential attainment.

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