What are the pros and cons of foreign aid?

What are some pros and cons for using a college student's financial aid status (e.g., via FAFSA) as a proxy for his or her socioeconomic background/status?

• Programs that want to broaden participation in higher education want to include students from backgrounds that are traditionally underrepresented.  There are laws about using some demographic information as selection criteria (e.g., primary ethnic background), so some education professionals use socioeconomic background as a criterion.  Can eligibility for free financial aid resources (as determined through the FAFSA program) be interpreted as an indicator of having come from a background with limited financial means?

• Answer:

  Researchers generally use Pell Grant recipient status as a proxy for low-income students. This is generally effective although imperfect. It doesn't encode the highest educational attainment of the student's parents, for example, which can have a significant impact on college access and completion. Home/work/family conflicts are a key predictor of completion, not just money.  There are many kinds of support, and financial support is just one of them.