In this report, the authors tally the cost of child care and the price of attending a public four-year college--including tuition and fees, housing, food, books, and transportation--to determine a student parent's actual annual cost of pursuing a degree. That number is used to calculate the "student parent affordability gap," that is,…

This report shares data relating to Ontario student and graduate profiles in the following areas: (1) College activity; (2) Numbers of Ontario college applicants, students and graduates; (3) Domestic learner demographics and characteristics; (4) Apprentices; (5) Continuing education students; (6) Graduates; (7) Perceptions; and (8) Key performance…

Ten years ago when Ruffalo Noel Levitz (RNL) published its annual study of freshman motivations, those students were entering college in the shadow of the worst recession since the Great Depression. That report, which examined attitudes of students from 2009, provided insight into their motivations, attitudes, and needs in the midst of a very…

What's working in student retention at the undergraduate level? To find out, Noel-Levitz conducted a 71-item, Web-based poll in May of 2011 as part of the firm's continuing series of benchmark polls for higher education. Highlights from the findings: (1) The highest-ranked practices in 2011--across public and private, two-year and four-year…

How much do the attitudes and needs of college freshmen change after attending classes for a semester and receiving targeted interventions aimed at increasing their success in college? To find out, Noel-Levitz compared pre- and post-survey data from more than 10,000 first-year undergraduates nationwide in 2013 who completed an initial motivational…

This report examines three focal points for understanding incoming first-year students' motivation to complete college: (1) academic motivational barriers and opportunities; (2) social motivational barriers and opportunities; and (3) financial motivational barriers and opportunities. [For "2016 National Freshman Motivation to Complete College…

Unless the United States moves with urgency, today's young people will be the first generation in American history to be less educated than their predecessors. Consider this a sobering wake-up call--and an urgent appeal for action now. In this report, one will get an unprecedented look behind the ivy-covered walls of America's public colleges and…