In 2005, the National Center for Higher Education Management Systems (NCHEMS) produced a report entitled "A New Look at the Institutional Component of Higher Education Finance: A Guide for Evaluating Performance Relative to Financial Resources." It gauged the performance of state public postsecondary education sectors (i.e. research, bachelor's…

In this article we describe the application of a phenomenological hermeneutical method for interpreting interview texts. The subject of the interviews was to ask "what is the experience of being an educated woman" and get to the core of the experience as much as possible. Using an exploratory phenomenological method to document women's…

The Bologna Process places special emphasis on the outcomes of higher education in terms of employability and key competencies. Taking Germany as an example, this article examines whether the introduction of a two-tier degree structure actually has led to an enhanced acquisition of key competencies. Based on constructivist learning theories, in…

High school students taking college courses that simultaneously fulfill high school requirements and give general education credit toward a bachelor's degree have become more of a presence on college campuses across the nation. The purpose behind these programs appears to be the belief that dual enrollment (also known as "concurrent enrollment")…

In January 2009, in the last week of the Bush Administration, the U.S. Department of Education (ED), upon orders from the departing political appointee staff, published the final report in a long running National Evaluation of Upward Bound (UB). The study was conducted by the contractor, Mathematica Policy Research. After more than a year in…

This paper inquires about the conditions that enable the rise of new applied undergraduate fields in American universities and colleges. After identifying high-growth fields since 1950, the paper traces their professional development from an embryonic stage until universities and colleges started offering bachelor's degrees in those fields. The…

Blacks, Hispanics/Latinos, and Native Americans have long been underrepresented in schools and the workplace in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Although the monitoring of representation has become a larger and more important enterprise, existing databases make it difficult to discern trends in participation at different stages…

The data for this study was obtained from student records at North Iowa Area Community College and the National Student Clearinghouse. The National Student Clearinghouse, a non-profit organization, is the nation's source for post-secondary and secondary student degree, diploma and enrollment verification. NIACC students from 1996 to 2005 who…

This report presents an update of the progress of Tapping America's Potential (TAP), a coalition of 15 of the nation's leading business organizations, and assesses three years' progress since 2005 in working towards the goal of doubling the number of students earning bachelor's degrees in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) by 2015.…

In 2011, South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley signed into law the South Carolina Higher Education Efficiency and Administrative Policies Act, maintaining the transparency and accountability that lead to increased academic quality and affordability at colleges and universities. It is in this context that ACTA (American Council of Trustees and…

In 2006, TG (Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Corporation) issued a report entitled "Ready, Willing and Unable: How Financial Barriers Obstruct Bachelor Degree Attainment in Texas." Drawing on a report by the Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance, which projected the number of bachelor degrees lost nationally due to financial…

Without appropriate education, American workers are hampered in their ability to have the requisite technical skills needed to participate fully and effectively in the modern workforce. Higher education as a system must develop programs and infrastructures that ensure adult learners receive postsecondary education, including at the baccalaureate…

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…

The "Fall Enrollment and Staffing Report 2013" provides a snapshot of enrollments in community and technical colleges during fall quarter 2013. The report addresses the questions most commonly raised regarding the community and technical colleges in Washington. The primary source of information for this document is the State Board for…

Although a stunning success in many ways, California's 1960 Master Plan for Higher Education has been a conspicuous failure in one respect: California ranks near the bottom of the states in the proportion of its college-age population that attains a baccalaureate degree. California's poor record of B.A. attainment is an unforeseen consequence of…