Concerns about rising tuition and how students can afford to finance their major investments in postsecondary education are widespread. Solid insights into these questions require accurate and up-to-date information about prices. "Trends in College Pricing, 2013" reports on the prices charged by colleges and universities in 2013-14, how…

The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of various intensity levels of athletic participation on academic and leadership performance in a selective institution. For the purpose of this study a retrospective analysis of existing admissions and student performance data was conducted. The continuous dependent variables were academic…

The Chinese financial aid system intends to increase the affordability of postsecondary education and provide access to college for disadvantaged students. However, the research base for access to aid in China is extremely thin. Using data from a large cross-sectional survey in Beijing, this study found that attending selective institutions with…

As the number of college students studying science continues to grow, it is important to identify variables that predict their success. The literature indicates that motivation and learning strategy use facilitate science success. Research findings show these variables can change throughout a semester and differ by performance level, gender and…

In January 2011, the University of Southern California Center for Enrollment Research, Policy, and Practice in conjunction with the Education Conservancy convened a national workshop--a unique experiment meant to consider "The Case for Change in College Admissions." Its 180 participants included university and college admissions officers…

Over the past decade, a small revolution has taken place at some of the world's leading universities, as they have started to provide free access to undergraduate course materials--including syllabi, assignments, and lectures--to anyone with an Internet connection. Yale offers high-quality audio and video recordings of a careful selection of…

The United States has become more ethnically diverse, and this trend is projected to continue. Despite an increase in minority group enrollment on campus in the United States during the last decade, their rates of degree completion are not keeping pace (NCES, 2007). The question that remains to be answered is: What factors are unique to minority…

Emulation by example is an old adage that has been a pragmatic initiative in great endeavors. To create a dynamic research culture too requires revisiting eminent personality and renowned organization by which one can copy in order to establish credibility. This paper explores the practicality of the emulation activities that help to establish…

This groundbreaking study finds that nearly all parents seek schools with a solid core curriculum in reading and math, an emphasis on science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education, and the development in students of good study habits, strong critical thinking skills, and excellent verbal and written communication skills. But some…

For the disproportionately well-off students who attend reasonably selective public and private institutions--roughly, the top 30%--life is good. Their colleges are well-resourced and so are they. They'll most likely graduate and go onto the substantial rewards society offers to those with a college degree. For everyone else--the bottom 70%--the…

In 2002, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation launched the Early College High School Initiative (ECHSI) with the primary goal of increasing the opportunity for underserved students to earn a postsecondary credential. To achieve this goal, Early Colleges provide underserved students with exposure to, and support in, college while they are in…

This paper explores the emergence of selective admission policies in Dutch university education. Such policies are being developed to promote excellence in a higher education system that is generally known to be "egalitarian" and increasingly criticized for a lack of differentiation. The changing policy context of admission in Dutch…

Why has the large income gap between blacks and whites persisted for decades after the passage of civil rights legislation? More specifically, why do African Americans remain substantially underrepresented in the highest-paying professions, such as science, engineering, information technology, and finance? A sophisticated study of racial…

As a follow up to the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) national studies of how well elementary teachers are prepared to teach reading and mathematics, NCTQ looked at preparation in both subjects in all undergraduate teacher preparation programs in Wyoming. This report evaluated Wyoming's undergraduate elementary teacher preparation…

This study develops a comprehensive theoretical framework regarding the evolution of the class divide in postsecondary education. I conceptualize three prototypes of class inequality--effectively maintained, declining, and expanding--and associate their emergence with the level of competition in college admissions. I also unearth the twin…