One Year Later: Coronavirus and the Cost of College

College students continue to face economic hardships as a result of the pandemic, and nearly 40% are changing their educational or career plans, according to Course Hero’s most recent survey of student emergency needs. With findings from 11,000 full and part-time college students, the survey reveals the impact and consequences students are still dealing with a year into the pandemic.

Key Findings

Student needs

It’s clear from the data that college students are struggling to pay day-to-day living costs—60% of students still need help paying for food and rent.

• While food, rent and job loss remain the top three reasons students need emergency aid, these have declined slightly compared to last year’s inaugural emergency needs research.
• Computer equipment, access to wifi and essential travel have increased in priority.
• Students also note tuition, bills, car-related expenses and childcare among their top expenses, with loans and books increasing in priority as compared to 2020.

Financial aid

Approximately 20% of students have received financial help from unemployment benefits, government assistance or family due to the pandemic.

• 28% of students report job loss, with nearly one quarter (22%) receiving unemployment benefits.
• Some have received aid from more than one source—the top two are the government (30%) and family members (37%).

Despite ongoing concerns about value, just 18% of students report receiving discounts on tuition.

Perceived value of higher education

Only about half of students believe they are getting their money’s worth from paying for college in this online learning environment.

• White students were twice as likely to question the value of college than Black or Latinx students.
• Community college students are least likely to question the value of their education, while students enrolled in four-year degree programs were three times more likely to question it.

Changes as a result of the pandemic

Forty percent of students are changing their educational or career plans.

• 16% of students reported a change in their course of study and an equal percentage reported a change in their career plans.
• 7% of students reported changing institutions—and 6% have left higher education completely.

This research is released as a part of Course Hero’s recently launched Research Hub, a resource for data and insights on higher education sourced from its community of millions of students and more than 60,000 verified educators. Discover additional insights on students and educators in higher education here.

Image Credit: Course Hero/Kati Sziágyi