Research Focus:

1. Tuition Costs and Trends on over 2500 colleges and universities.  We evaluate over 20 historical data points that measure tuition cost inflation rates, upside risk, downside potential and calculated MAR (minimal acceptable return) values.  Our analysis includes the building of 52 distinct tuition / tuition, room and board indexes, broken down by individual state and public vs. private schooling.
2. Underlying investments available in a 529 college savings plan including over 25 historical data points that measure returns, upside potential and downside risk.  Our evaluation methodology enables us to identify suitable college savings investments which we expect to meet required returns under various market conditions.  We use a combination of standard deviation, semi-variance, omega performance and other risk based characteristics to evaluate downside volatility.  1693's emphasis on downside risk makes our research unique. Organizations that can benefit from our extensive database and objective research include: Software providers, mutual fund families, money managers, college savings plan executives, brokerage firms, registered investment advisors, consultants, and individual advisors.