The Iowa Student Aid Commission is considering undertaking a study to give students more information about ways to pay for the state’s educational opportunities. The study, the first of its kind in Iowa, would combine data from state universities, community colleges and private accredited colleges.

The combination of information regarding graduation rates, loan amounts, loan default rates and demographic information is what makes the study stand out from previous studies.

Sen. Herman Quirmbach, D-Ames and ISU associate professor of economics, came up with the proposed study.

“The study will focus on the welfare of the students as consumers,” he said. “We must take into consideration the impact of family income on college success and those colleges that take greater risks in granting loans must not be penalized.”

Jan Friedel, a member of the commission, said major demographic differences can lead to changes in success and failure rates. Understanding these demographic differences and the impact they have on student success rates would be an integral part of the proposed study.

Quirmbach said parents must remain involved in the college-funding process.

“Eighteen-year-old college students are not, on their own, knowledgeable enough about the best way to approach paying for college,” he said.

Quirmbach said a study like the one proposed would provide educational institutions with the necessary information to improve themselves and give students the information to make more informed decisions about what educational institutions they want to attend and the best ways to pay for them.

Throughout the meeting, several commission members expressed concern with the cost of completing the study. The most recent estimate given to the commission by a consulting firm in Washington, D.C. was $70,000.

A major concern was the cost-to-benefit ratio of such a study. Several board members suggested information from past studies could simply be combined to provide the same end result.

Karen Misjak, executive director of the commission, said the primary purpose of the Iowa Student Aid Commission is to facilitate and improve the relationship among lending institutions, educational institutions and the students as consumers.