Both the Times and the Washington Posttoday offer dire news for college-bound families, based on Measuring Up, the annual report from the National Center for Public Policy in Higher Education(complete report/pdf here).

Escalating costs outstrip family incomes -- average family income's risen by 150% since the '80s, while college fees have nearly tripled that rate, increasing by 439%. In some cases, tuition represents three-fourths of a household's annual income -- and students with the cash to pay (thanks to parents, grandparents, dwindling loans, and college funding) are less prepared for the rigors of higher ed.

Less preparation translates, no surprise, to lower diploma-completion rates: In an international ranking of nations whose adults hold associates and more advanced degrees, US adults aged 35-64 years old rank second, behind Canada. But for gen-Xers of 25-34, US ranking drops to tenth -- a steep plummet, and if expert predictions materialize as true, a harbinger of academic achievement, or lack of it, yet to come.

Look for more on this theme next week, when the College Board is expected to release its study of access to higher ed.