The author discusses the results of an annual "Voluntary Support of Education" survey by the Council for Aid to Education. According to the report, after two lackluster years, donations to U.S. colleges and universities rose last year by a healthy 8.2 percent, to an estimated $30.3-billion. The total raised comes close to the amount seen in 2008,…

Student-conduct administrators around the country are hailing restorative justice as the next big thing. A blend of mediation and restitution, it seeks to resolve a conflict by identifying the harms caused and devising, with suggestions from both victims and offenders, an agreement to repair them. That approach to discipline grabs campus officials…

In this article, the author reports on an annual survey on foreign applications to American graduate schools performed by the Council of Graduate Schools. The results suggests that while American graduate schools have continued to attract an increasing number of applications from international students, the rate of increase appears to be slowing.…

A 2005 national survey of incoming freshmen in the US reveals that two out of three college freshmen believe it is essential or very important to help others who are in difficulty, with 83 percent stating they volunteered at least occasionally during their senior year of high school. The survey also finds an increased level of political…

Researchers at Emory University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill are seeking an answer to whether the Internet can help save the life of a suicidal student. A study conducted at both colleges gauged the effectiveness of anonymous online depression-screening questionnaires and results indicate that the surveys helped counselors…

A "Chronicle" survey of the pay and benefits offered to research and teaching assistants revealed a widening gap between public and private institutions. (Includes a table of stipends for graduate assistants at top research universities, and profiles of several graduate students' financial situations.) (EV)

Reports findings of a 1999 survey of 261,217 college freshmen at 462 two-year and four-year institutions concerning lifestyle and stress. Finds increasing numbers of students, especially women, report feeling overwhelmed and under stress. Also reports declines in drinking and smoking, more students planning to work full-time, more students…

Reports study findings indicating that the share of college and university presidencies held by women doubled from 1986 to 1998, and that of African American, Hispanic, Asian American, and American Indian presidents rose by 40 percent. Graphs detail findings concerning presidents' characteristics, percentage of women and minority presidents by…

Study examining the earnings of students accepted by elite colleges but who chose to attend less-selective institutions finds that students do not enhance earnings by graduating from colleges with high average Scholastic Assessment Test scores, suggesting that admissions decisions fail to account for intangibles such as students' ambition,…

In the fall of 2000, half the freshman class arrived at college with their own computers, proficient at using Windows, word-processing software, the Internet and electronic mail. The author offers a look at the computing lifestyles of freshmen on five college campuses. (JM)

The notion that male students are gradually disappearing from college is questioned in a report from the American Council on Education. Rather than a generalized education crisis among men, the study found problems among two subgroups: low-income students of all races, and African-American students. (JM)

Presents data from institutional tax forms for the pay and benefits of key personnel at 475 private colleges and universities for 1996-97 and 1997-98. Institutions are grouped by Carnegie Classification and listings typically include data for six positions, such as the president, highest paid faculty member, a senior vice president, and chief…

College presidents' reported perceptions of the five-year forecast for their campuses are tabulated on: current political environment for higher education; critical issues at their institutions; and level of demand on their attention of academic and financial conditions, student services, and recruitment, compensation, and morale of faculty and…

The results of a public opinion poll concerning the emphasis on college athletics, coaches' job security, paying students for competing, academic standards for athletes, and gambling by both the public and the athletes, are presented. (MSE)

College tuition fees have risen an average annual rate of 1% above that of inflation over a 16-year period--from 1970-86. The debate over why college costs are skyrocketing is discussed, and disagreement with Education Secretary William J. Bennett's criticisms of rising tuition are described. (MLW)