While the average college tuition has increased at a slower rate for the second academic year, the government's funding for financial aid programs has fallen, The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday. A study released by the College Board showed that public four-year colleges and universities experienced a 2.9 percent growth in tuition, the lowest one-year increase in nearly 30 years. Private school tuitions rose by 3.8 percent, a figure slightly lower than that of recent years. Shrinking government aid, however, has led to a $1,770 cost increase per student. The average aid fell to $6,646 for every student, compared with $9,111 five years ago.
Magazine publishing giant Cond Nast, home to publications such as Vogue, Vanity Fair and The New Yorker, will discontinue its internship programs beginning next year, USA Today reported. Two lawsuits were filed against the publishing house by former interns Lauren Ballinger, who interned for W Magazine, and Matthew Leib, who worked for The New Yorker. The interns claim that they were paid less than minimum wage, as low as $1 an hour. The lawsuits cited Labor Department guidelines, which consider unpaid internships lawful only if they are part of an educational training program and do not replace employees, The New York Times reported. Other companies such as Harper's Bazaar and Fox Searchlight also face lawsuits from interns due to breaches of minimum wage and overtime rules.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology Greek organizations located in Boston are prohibited from holding social events or parties until the city issues new inspection certificates, The Huffington Post reported. Although the main campus is located in Cambridge, many of its Greek and alternate living houses are located across the Charles River and fall under Boston's jurisdiction. The decision will impact 19 of the university's 27 fraternities, three of the six sororities and two of the six independent living groups. The decision was made by the Boston Inspectional Services Department, which examined nine residences in the city and determined that a house's safety could not be guaranteed when the number of guests exceeds the number of residents.
