Consumer Information

Pursuant to the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008, academic institutions must make certain information available to current and prospective students.  The required information can be seen under the following categories:

General Information

Academic

Financial Aid 

Health and Safety

General Information

• General Contact Information
• Accrediting and licensing of the institution
• College Navigator  is a free consumer information tool designed to help students, parents, high school counselors, and others search for and obtain information about U.S. postsecondary institutions.  
• Copyright and peer-to-peer file sharing issues
• Services and facilities for students with disabilities
• Diversity of Student Body (enrolled full time students) - Institutions must make available to current and prospective students information about student body diversity, including the percentage of enrolled, full-time students who
• are male;
• are female;
• are a self-identified member of a major racial or ethnic group; and
• receive a Federal Pell Grant

The following statistics are taken from the College Navigator (http://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/):

In Fall 2011, The Boston Conservatory’s student body was made up of the following:

Self Identified Race/Ethnicity:

Pell Grant Recipients                             20% of undergraduates

• Facilities
• Facilities Security
• Graduation and Retention Rates (statistics taken from College Navigator)
• For students who began in 2005, the Graduation Rate is 53%
• For first time students pursuing a Bachelors degree, the Retention Rate is 87%.  This percentage represents the number of students who started their degree in Fall 2010 and returned in Fall 2011 
• Privacy Rights (Family Educational Right to Privacy Act – FERPA)
• Refund policies
• Tuition and Fees
• Vaccination policies
• Official withdrawal policies.

 Academic 

• Academic programs
• Faculty
• Transfer credit policies

Financial Aid

• Financial Aid Contact Information
• Financial Aid Process
• Available Financial Aid
• Information about Federal Financial Aid
• Cost of Attendance - Every school who participates in the Federal Financial Aid Program creates a "Cost of Attendance".  The CoA represents what it would cost for a student to attend a particular institution.  The CoA includes direct costs such as tuition and fees and indirect costs such as books, travel and off campus room and board.  It is an estimated figure.  
• Entrance Counseling - Borrowers of Federal Student Loans are required to learn their rights and responsibilities with regard to their loans.  They do this by going to www.studentloans.gov and filling out the Entrance Counseling Interview.  Students need their FAFSA pin number and their social security number to enter the website.
• Exit Counseling - Once a student who has received Federal Student Loans graduates, withdraws or drops below half time, they are required to fill out the Exit Counseling Interview at www.nslds.ed.gov.  The Exit Counseling Interview renews the Entrance Counseling Information and also provides information about repayment and deferral options.  Students will need their FAFSA pin number and their social security number to get into the NSLDS website.  
• Federal Loan Code Of Conduct 
• Financial Aid Penalties for Drug Violations - Federal law provides that a student who has been convicted of an offense under any federal or state law involving the pssession or sale of a controlled substance during a period of enrollment for which the student was receiving financial aid shall not be eligible to receive any federal or institutional grant, loan, or work assistance during the period beginning on the date of such conviction and ending after the interval specified in the following table.  If convicted of an offense involving: 

A student whose eligibility has been suspended based on a conviction for possession or sale of a controlled substance may resume eligibility before the end of the ineligibility period if:

1. the student satisfactorily completes a drug rehapilitation program that:
1. complies with the criteria prescribed in the federal regulations;
2. and includes two unannounced drug tests
2. the student successfully passes two unannounced drug tests conducted by a drug rehabilitation program that complies with the criteria prescribed in the federal regulations; or
3. the conviction is reversed, set aside, or otherwise rendered nugatory.

• Net Price Calculator – is used to find estimates of a student’s potential federal financial aid.  Institutional aid is not included in the Net Price Calculator. 
• Return of Federal Financial Aid requirements
• State grant assistance

Health and Safety

• Public Safety Contact Information
• Drug and alcohol use prevention program
• Drug Free workplace statement (page 23 of Faculty Handbook, page 34 of Staff Handbook)
• Emergency notification
• Emergency response and evacuation procedures
• Fire safety report
• Missing Student Notification Policy and Procedures
• Public Safety and Crime Statistics