The returns to higher education have increased dramatically in recent decades with the rise of the global, knowledge-based economy. Research shows that the college earnings premium has increased more than 10 percent over the last fifteen years and that the returns to college are concentrated among completers. Despite these benefits, many students…

America's great public universities were founded with the highest expectations of academic excellence and service to their states. Overall, these institutions, often called the "flagship universities," do a poor job of ensuring that undergraduate students engage in an intellectually vibrant campus culture and leave with a solid…

We use a representative sample of Italian graduates drawn from the Consorzio AlmaLaurea to assess the impact of individual and family characteristics, university inputs and the labour market on the time taken to attain a degree. Our estimates highlight that all these dimensions drive the outcome analysed. Weak labour market prospects contribute…

This study explores the high school graduation experiences of students with disabilities, using data from the National Longitudinal Transition Study-2 (NLTS2, 2010), and asking: (a) After entering high school, on average, how long does it take for students with disabilities to graduate? (b) Is time to graduation different for students with…

Essential to tracking student success at community colleges is the availability of solid data and commonly defined metrics that go beyond measuring the traditional (and limited) enrollment and graduation rates that these colleges report to the federal government. In particular, what is needed are metrics that illuminate what happens to students…

Programs linking college aid to academic achievement could work either by lowering the cost of college or by inducing additional student effort. I examine the PROMISE program in West Virginia, which offers free tuition to students who maintain a minimum GPA and course load. Using administrative data, I exploit discontinuities in the eligibility…

Nearly 40 percent of the students entering 2- and 4-year postsecondary institutions indicated their intention to major in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) in 2012. But the barriers to students realizing their ambitions are reflected in the fact that about half of those with the intention to earn a STEM bachelor's degree and…

The United States has long been a model for accessible, affordable education, as exemplified by the country's public universities. And yet less than 60 percent of the students entering American universities today are graduating. Why is this happening, and what can be done? "Crossing the Finish Line" provides the most detailed exploration…

Supplemental Instruction (SI) is a national program designed to aid college student learning. Many researchers have noted that analysis of the impact of the SI program on student achievement is problematic as a result of the inherent self-selection bias. We apply a sufficiently sophisticated statistical technique that controls for the…

Despite the worldwide prestige of America's doctoral programs in the humanities, all is not well in this area of higher education and hasn't been for some time. The content of graduate programs has undergone major changes, while high rates of student attrition, long times to degree, and financial burdens prevail. In response, the Andrew W. Mellon…

Approximately 28% of students with disabilities do not complete high school (National Longitudinal Transition Study-2, 2005). This increases the likelihood that these students will experience low wages, high rates of incarceration, and limited access to postsecondary education. This article reviews evidence-based secondary transition practices…

This report examines enrollment and graduation trends at eight Texas institutions, highlights promising programs and strategies for serving Latino students, and offers policy recommendations for improving success rates for the state's Latino students. The analysis was prepared as part of Excelencia's Accelerating Latino Student Success (ALASS)…

Reviews the college completion/graduation rate thresholds developed by several states and discusses advantages and disadvantages of several statistical approaches, including use of the one standard deviation lower bound method, the logit prediction bound method, the linear regression method, and the logistic regression method. (DB)

The Saint Paul Foundation contracted with the Wilder Research Center to conduct an evaluation of their Two Feathers Scholarship Program. The Two Feathers Scholarship Program is funded through the Two Feathers Endowment, which is one part of the Foundation's SpectrumTrust. SpectrumTrust is a unique partnership between communities of color and The…

This report on outcomes in New Jersey's public colleges and universities has the following key findings: (1) total undergraduate enrollment decreased by approximately 15,000 students between 1992 and 1997 as a result of declining part-time enrollment and despite an increase of 8,000 in full-time undergraduate enrollment during the same period; (2)…