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ERIC Number: ED657279
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2022-Oct
Pages: 36
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Building Stronger Community College Transfer Pathways: Evidence from Massachusetts
Richard J. Murnane; John B. Willett; John P. Papay; Ann Mantil; Preeya P. Mbekeani; Aubrey McDonough
Grantee Submission
The Massachusetts Department of Higher Education (DHE) and the state's 28 public colleges and universities have collaborated over the last fifteen years to make easier and more transparent the process of transferring from a community college to a bachelor's degree program in one of the state's public colleges or universities. In this report, we follow 10 cohorts of Massachusetts high-school graduates who entered Massachusetts community colleges (MACCs) from fall 2005 through fall 2014. We track the students in each entry cohort over their academic careers. We address two research questions: 1) whether cross-cohort trends in the proportion of students who transferred and the proportion of transferring students who earned bachelor's degrees within the next four years are consistent with the hypothesis that the state's collaborative efforts successfully facilitated these events; and 2) whether trends in transfer and bachelor's degree receipt differ across recognized sources of educational inequality in the United States. We find a mixture of good news and troubling patterns. While the overall transfer rate remained stable over this period, the transfer rate of students from higher-income families increased, while students from low-income families did not experience the same change. Smaller percentages of Black students and Latinx students transferred within six years than the percentages of Asian and White students who did so. In addition, the overall proportion of transferring students who earned a bachelor's degree within four years increased over time. The percentages of Black and Latinx students who earned bachelor's degrees within four years are lower than the comparable percentages for Asian and White students. [The Boston Foundation provided additional funding for the production of this policy brief through a grant to MassINC.]
Publication Type: Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education; Two Year Colleges; High Schools; Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: Institute of Education Sciences (ED); Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University; Boston Foundation
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Massachusetts
IES Funded: Yes
Grant or Contract Numbers: R305H190035