Bachelor's degrees are important marks of progress for both individuals and society. Compared with noncollege graduates, individuals who hold a bachelor's degree have higher lifetime earnings, lower odds of unemployment, and better health outcomes. This report uses the 2005-2009, 2010-2014, and 2015-2019 American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year…

Using descriptive statistics and logistic regressions, this study compared U.S. Census data from 22-24-year-old women in 1980 and 2020 to determine the individual and contextual variables most predictive of bachelor's degree attainment. The regressions were conducted for women overall, women who have ever enrolled in college, mothers, and mothers…

Purpose in life has consistently been found to be a key element of positive psychological and physical health outcomes (Burrow & Rainone, 2017; Keyes et al., 2002; Ryff, 1989; Ryff & Singer, 1998; Schmutte & Ryff, 1997; Zika & Chamberlain, 1992; Zilioli et al., 2015). Given the current state of the world, with an ongoing pandemic…

Do older community college students build momentum toward graduation differently than their younger peers? One-third of students in community colleges are 25 years of age or older, and these students tend to have lower rates of graduation than their younger peers. Yet, we know little about how the factors that influence college graduation differ…

The expansion of higher education has led to greater diversity among students, with a significant portion of them aged 25 and above. This demographic group represents a range of intersecting identities associated with their different roles, responsibilities, and life trajectories. While older students face obstacles to engagement, persistence, and…

This issue of "DataPoints" shows that the number of first-time associate and bachelor's degree earners has dropped in almost all age groups since 2012-13, except for the under 25 group, according to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. The figures are consistent with trends when the economy is hot; that is, many older…

A recent increased focus is being placed on college completion agendas, yet there is limited research on senior attrition. Examining why students leave school when they are so close to being done and what motivated them to return when they did, this exploratory case study analyzes several data sets at one public university where a degree…

Numerous studies have investigated the consequences of vertical transfer on students' higher education outcomes in comparison to "native 4-year students"--those who went straight from high school into a bachelor's program. However, the long-term labor market outcomes for vertical transfer students are understudied. Using…

We conduct an empirical simulation exercise that gauges the plausible impact of increased rates of college attainment on a variety of measures of income inequality and economic insecurity. Using two different methodological approaches--a distributional approach and a causal parameter approach--we find that increased rates of bachelor's and…

This policy brief discusses an empirical simulation exercise that gauges the plausible impact of increased rates of college attainment on a variety of measures of income inequality and economic insecurity. The results reveal that increasing college attainment would shrink gaps between the 90th percentile and lower half of the earnings…

Understanding the economic and social benefits of more college-educated residents, over 40 states during the past decade have set goals to increase their state's share of adults with college credentials and degrees. In many of these states, achieving these "degree attainment" goals will be directly related to their state's ability to…

The aim of this article is to examine non-traditional graduates' life transitions before, during, and after higher education (HE) in Sweden. The article builds on a theory called biographical work, which is used for understanding non-traditional graduates' identity formation and transformation. The article is based on the narratives of two…

The transition from tertiary education to work involves substantial uncertainty and changes between education programmes, jobs and industries. The current major disruption in the labour market is only going to increase this uncertainty, making it essential for graduates to be prepared for it. Graduates with more dynamic career trajectories are…

This study aimed to evaluate the Public Relations and Publicity associate degree distance program available to students through Open Education Faculty at Anadolu University, Turkey. The study used Erden's (1998) component-oriented model and a convergent mixed methods design employing an online questionnaire form. The study population included…

Nebraska is committed to measuring its progress toward achieving the major statewide goals through national comparisons and institutional peer comparisons. It is the aim of the Comprehensive Plan that, when rank order is appropriate, Nebraska will rank among the ten best states in national comparisons, and individual public institutions will rank…