Colleges that have dropped loan requirements argue that doing so helps recruit more students from low-income backgrounds, as they would otherwise pay high tuition and fees.
No-loan practices have been shown to help those from modest means, to an extent. A recent study from researchers at Pennsylvania State and Michigan State universities found that no-loan policies at public institutions bolstered the share of students from the lowest two income quintiles, which are families who earn about $40,000 or less a year.
