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Universities settle price fixing allegations

In a groundbreaking development, the University of Chicago has taken the lead among 16 prestigious institutions in resolving allegations related to a controversial financial aid practice.

In January 2022, a lawsuit was filed by five former undergraduate students hailing from Duke, Northwestern, Vanderbilt, and other institutions against 16 schools including UChicago, Yale, Brown, and Northwestern. The focal point of the suit was the 568 Presidents Group, an entity facilitating collaborative efforts among schools to establish uniform standards for allocating financial aid.

The lawsuit claimed that these schools had participated in an alleged “price-fixing cartel,” aimed at diminishing competition in the realm of financial aid. This alleged cartel was accused of artificially inflating the net cost of attendance for financially aided students, while favoring wealthier applicants. The plaintiffs contended that over 170,000 students were potentially overcharged by hundreds of millions of dollars.

You can read more on the matter here.

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The juniors rise again

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