The WASFAA News
       October/November 2000 Online Publication       
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Suggestions for Research Grant Topics and Study
by Rod Dunn, Research Committee Chair
Associate Director of Financial Aid Services, University of Idaho

The following information is provided to assist anyone contemplating or in the process of beginning a research project:

Identifying a Research Topic
Projects that address any financial aid-related topic are invited, particularly those that focus on the federal student aid programs, need analysis, delivery, and management/administration. In addition, the committee offers the following suggestions to help applicants begin to shape their thinking about possible proposals. This list of topics is not intended to suggest priorities for the grant competition.

  • The effectiveness of WASFAA Summer Institute in the career development of participants;
  • Institutional impact of actual or proposed changes in law, regulations, and program appropriations;
  • Relationship of loans, work, or childcare subsidies to student persistence;
  • Impact of undergraduate indebtedness on decisions about graduate education;
  • Technology utilization;
  • Early awareness and planning for postsecondary education;
  • Economic, social, and cultural benefits of higher education;
  • Role of financial aid in enrollment management;
  • Need analysis theory;
  • New strategies for meeting the needs of students;
  • Distance and/or non-traditional education.

Resources Available to Researchers
  • The World Wide Web
    The NASFAA Web Site provides excellent resources and infor-mation for researchers, including links to many other research-related web sites. Access to the NASFAA Web Site is restricted to NASFAA members only and is accessible by password. If you are a WASFAA member and are not able to access the Web Site, please contact the NASFAA office for assistance at (202)785- 0453. If you are not a NASFAA member, here are several web addresses that may provide useful information:
    The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)
    AskERIC
    The Bureau of Labor Statistics
    The U.S. Census Bureau
  • NASFAA's Annotated Bibliography of Student Financial Aid.
    NASFAA maintains a comprehensive Annotated Bibliography of Literature on Student Financial Aid that is often used as the basis of a literature review for proposed research projects. The most recent version includes citations from periodicals, research reports, journal articles, and government documents published between 1993 and 1996. NASFAA members can search the bibliography via NASFAA's web site under Student Aid Tools and Research. Non-members should contact the NASFAA Publications Desk at (202)785-0453, ext. 152, for further information.
  • The Research Resource Network
    The Research Resource Network (RRN) is sponsored by NASFAA in cooperation with the Association for Institutional Research (AIR). The RRN is a voluntary network of financial aid administrators and institutional researchers who are willing to help each other with the conduct of student aid research. By registering to be included in the RRN database, volunteers agree to provide some level of assistance to other NASFAA and AIR members who contact them. The form and extent of this assistance is entirely the decision of the individuals involved. A database of RRN volunteers, organized by areas of interest and areas of expertise, will be available to all NASFAA and AIR members via NASFAA's public web site. You will be able to access this database without a password.
  • AID-RESEARCH-NET-L
    In conjunction with the RRN (above), a listserv created to meet the needs of the aid research community. This listserv can offer tremendous benefits to financial aid administrators who do not have much research experience, but would like to learn what is going on in the field of student aid research. Many institutional researchers know how to conduct research, but they are not very familiar with financial aid operations. Many student aid administrators, on the other hand, wish to know how to conduct research. AID-RESEARCH-NET-L can be a bridge between IR (Institutional Research) and AID officers. As of June, 1999, there were approximately 150 people subscribed to this listserv. The majority of the list members are either from NASFAA or from AIR (Association for Institutional Research). To be included in the mailing list, send an e-mail message to Yuko Mulugetta at ymm1@cornell.edu.
  • The Educational Resources Information Clearinghouse (ERIC)
    For very recent publications on student aid, a search of the Educational Resources Information Clearinghouse (ERIC) database is recommended. Consult your institutional library for guidance on conducting an ERIC search, or contact the ERIC Clearinghouse on Higher Education in Washington, DC; phone (202)296-2597.
  • The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)
    The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) This portion of the U.S. Department of Education conducts a number of national studies of interest to financial aid researchers. For information, visit the NCES web site at http://www.ed.gov/NCES/ or contact Aurora D'Amico at NCES; telephone (202)219-1365.
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