Colleges must tell any enrolled or prospective student the cost of attendance, and those that don’t could face a fine or other penalties, the Education Department reminded institutions Tuesday.
In an enforcement bulletin, department officials said they identified instances of some admissions representatives failing to tell students the cost of a program. In some cases, they denied access to cost information unless students turned over personal information such as their name and date of birth.
“Institutions must make the cost of attendance, along with other institutional and programmatic information, readily available to enrolled and prospective students,” officials wrote in the bulletin. “Barriers or conditions such as those listed above could lead to non-compliance with this requirement.”
In the last year, the department discovered the potential violations during oversight activities, which included investigations and the use of undercover agents commonly known as secret shoppers to test colleges’ compliance. The Office of Federal Student Aid, which handles enforcement activity, said in the bulletin that it is monitoring lawsuits, complaints and tips for allegations that institutions didn’t make the cost of attendance readily available.
The cost of attendance includes tuition and fees charged to students as well as estimates of costs for books and supplies, typical charges for room and board, and transportation costs, along with any additional costs, according to the bulletin.
