APSCU on Gainful Employment: Trust but Verify

For more information:
Mary Gotschall Bob Cohen
202-336-6744 202-336-6836
mary.gotschall@apscu.org bob.cohen@apscu.org

APSCU on Gainful Employment: Trust but Verify
Question about Fundamental Legal Authority Remains
WASHINGTON, DC – June 1, 2011 – The Association of Private Sector Colleges and Universities issued the following statement in response to the Department of Education’s release of the gainful employment rule:
We remain very concerned that the gainful employment regulation, while reflecting the fact that the Department has listened to the sector and made changes to its initial proposal, is still using the same ill-advised metric approach to this matter and is clearly outside of its statutory authority. Notwithstanding the changes, the real question is how the regulation will impact students, particularly non-traditional students served by our institutions. We will not know the answer to that until we have had the opportunity to run an independent analysis of the Department’s metric. Our concern is that the regulation will still penalize programs with great outcomes while allowing under-performing programs to continue. We need to trust but verify the impact of the new regulation. The APSCU Board will review the regulation’s impact on students carefully before deciding its next steps.
About APSCU
The Association of Private Sector Colleges and Universities is a voluntary membership organization of accredited, private postsecondary schools, institutes, colleges and universities that provide career-specific educational programs. APSCU has more than 1,900 members that educate and support approximately two million students each year for employment in over 200 occupational fields. APSCU member institutions provide the full range of higher education programs: Master's and doctoral degree programs, two- and four-year associate and baccalaureate degree programs, and short-term certificate and diploma programs. Visit APSCU at www.apscu.org. On September 22, 2010, APSCU changed its name from the Career College Association.