An interesting report in the Observer newspaper on 22 August picked up that Kaplan’s parent company, the Washington Post, saw its share price fall to the lowest point this year as the row about defaults on student loans among private sector students in the USA continues. Peter Preston’s report noted:
“Some 62% of Post revenues last year come from the Kaplan private education empire it owns: 600 institutions in 30 countries, 1 million students, 31,000 staff. It’s a profitable empire over two dozen major sites in the UK alone. Think Liverpool, Leicester and Bradford, as well as Holborn College.
But in the US, its former students seem a bit slow at repaying their loans – repayment rates are 28% as opposed to 54% of alumni at public colleges – and federal financial aid is in jeopardy. So the share price plummets.”
Read the full story here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2010/aug/22/washington-post-studen-loan-trouble