Giving Compass' Take:

· A new report from the Institute for Higher Education Policy suggests colleges and policymakers strengthen need-based financial aid for low-income college students to achieve college affordability.

· How can colleges provide more aid for low-income students? How can policymakers help with college affordability?

· Here's more on the call to strengthen need-based financial aid for college students.

Increasing the size of Pell Grants, targeting aid to the neediest students, and providing more program-level data on debt and earnings can help.

IHEP interviewed 17 "low-income and working-class" students to understand the challenges these groups face during college. Most of those interviewed said their aid was critical to helping them stay in college. However, it often wasn't enough to cover their full cost of attendance, forcing them to make ends meet by leaning on friends and family, taking out loans, working more and cutting back elsewhere, including skipping meals to lower food costs.

Their experiences reflect those of many other students. In 2016, the average student had nearly $9,000 in unmet financial need. Meanwhile, black and Latino students tend to shoulder greater amounts of unmet need than white students, and student-parents more than students without children, according to data cited by IHEP.

IHEP contends increasing funding for need-based aid is the best way to make college more affordable. In the meantime, however, it says colleges can fill in the gaps by providing stipends for course materials; helping students apply for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program; and offering emergency grants for those who experience unexpected costs.

Read the full article about college affordability by Natalie Schwartz at Education Dive.