A report issued today sheds light on the prevalence of tuition discounting at public colleges and universities. The report, published by the College Board, says that at two-year public and four-year private colleges, more than 65 percent of grant aid goes to students with documented financial need, while at public four-year universities, only 40 percent of institutional aid goes to such students.

The results complement the findings of a report, issued last month by the National Association of College and University Business Officers, on tuition discounting at four-year private institutions (The Chronicle, August 23).

The authors of the new report—Sandy Baum, a senior policy analyst at the College Board, and Lucie Lapovsky, a former president of Mercy College—also found that the average discount rate at public flagships was 19 percent in the 2003-4 academic year, and that only 44 percent of the aid went to students with documented financial need.

The report, “Tuition Discounting: Not Just a Private College Practice,” is available on the College Board’s Web site.