<A href=”http://www.the-american-interest.com/2015/03/04/private-colleges-no-show-business/“>The American Interest</a>: <blockquote>This “high tuition, high discount” strategy is common for private schools around the country, and the same problems apply. According to a report from last June, colleges are discounting their rates like never before, earning only 54 cents for every dollar of tuition charged. The National Association of College and University Business Officers records the average discount rate for private colleges as 36.1 percent in 2009 and 40.9 in 2013. Sweet Briar’s rate, clearly, was on the high side all along.

It’s no surprise that this strategy of charging high tuition and then slashing it selectively (whether for merit- or need-based aid) doesn’t always work. Whatever array of prices you charge, you still need enough customers to keep the doors open. We’d be shocked if Sweet Briar is the last school to pack in the show.</blockquote>