This report is based on the records of 23,470 students who earned a bachelor's degree as graduates of the Class of 2016. The study population includes all students who earned a degree from one of the six public baccalaureate institutions or from one of the 16 community and technical colleges that offer an applied bachelor's degree for whom…

International students are increasingly enrolling in U.S community colleges as a starting point to their higher education. However, limited research examines the factors contributing to their successful transfer to a 4-year institution and bachelor degree attainment. Utilizing longitudinal transcript data from a large community college district in…

The "Current Term Enrollment Estimates Report Series" is published every December and May by the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. It provides national enrollment estimates by institutional sector, enrollment intensity, age group, gender, major field as well as state-level enrollment estimates. The average age for different…

The widespread notion of a general student debt "crisis" creates an exaggerated image of the problems associated with borrowing for college and diverts attention from the serious difficulties some students and former students face. A disproportionate amount of attention goes to the $1.5 trillion dollars in outstanding student debt.…

TransferBOOST (Bachelor's Opportunity Options that are Straightforward and Transparent) is a multi-year state-level initiative developed to provide students with affordable, quality, well-supported two- to four-year pathways. On average, 43 percent of credits are lost nationwide through the transfer process. Recognizing that today's students…

TransferBOOST (Bachelor's Opportunity Options that are Straightforward and Transparent) is a multi-year state-level initiative developed to provide students with affordable, quality, well-supported two- to four-year pathways. For every 100 students who enroll in community colleges, 31 students transfer to a four-year institution. Of those, only 15…

While the Pell Grant covers a substantial proportion of college tuition for low-income students, it has covered only two full-time semesters per year and has not included any support for summer courses through most of its history. As research has shown that continuous enrollment throughout the year increases college persistence and completion, the…

The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the highest unemployment that the U.S. has seen since the Great Depression, with particularly heavy job losses for Black, Hispanic, and Native American workers. In this set of studies commissioned by Lumina Foundation, the authors examine actions that states and community colleges can take to address the needs of…

The higher education landscape is changing rapidly, and with nationwide trends of declining enrollment, colleges and universities are faced with the challenging task of understanding what that means for them. In the state of Missouri, two- and four-year institutions have experienced decreases in enrollment, with an overall decrease of 9 percent…

Objective: This study examines the role of community colleges in closing the gender gap in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) by studying whether beginning at a community college improves the likelihood of female students earning their bachelor's degree in STEM. Method: Using nationally representative data, we apply a…

This paper describes the results of a four-year follow-up of need-based scholarship awardees at a community college as they made progress toward their goal of associate's degrees and/or bachelor's degrees in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields. From 2014 through 2018, through National Science Foundation funding,…

The purpose of this dissertation was to ascertain the outcomes of the transition of community colleges that now offer the nursing baccalaureate degree (BSN). Specifically, this study provides insight into the factors that prompted the addition of the BSN, the relationship to the institution's mission, faculty and administration perceptions of the…

The "Undergraduate Degree Earners Report," published annually by the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, provides counts of first-time graduates and graduates with prior awards by institutional sector, award level, age group, and gender. This report provides data on: (1) Number of First-Time Graduates and Graduates with Prior…

The focus of this paper is a course that may be helpful to consider for its overall role in guiding students to degree completion: Introductory Psychology or Psychology 100. The reason for focusing on Introductory Psychology is its commonality in both the Associate of Arts Direct Transfer Agreement (AA-DTA) degree and the Associate of Nursing…

The Florida Economic Security Report details economic outcomes of recent completers from Florida's public postsecondary educational institutions. Data from the State University System of Florida (SUS), the Florida College System (FCS), and District Technical Centers (DTCs) are included in this report. The report aims to document the variation in…