This study examines how performance-based funding (PBF) for public four-year institutions in the U.S. is associated with the production of short-term certificates. Results indicate that high-dosage PBF is associated with increases in both the number of short-term certificate programs offered and the number of short-term certificates awarded, even…

Pell Grants are the cornerstone of federal financial aid for students with low income who are enrolled in postsecondary education. Currently, these grants are available only to those who seek an initial undergraduate degree or credential requiring at least a typical semester of instruction. Because these rules may restrict access to programs…

This appendix volume supplements report NCEE 2025-005r, describing the effects of two experimental Pell Grant expansions: the first allowed income-eligible students with a bachelor's degree to obtain this form of federal financial aid for short-term occupational training programs and the second allowed income-eligible students to obtain this aid…

Using generalized difference-in-difference and synthetic control modeling, this study estimates the influence of the community-college baccalaureate (CCB) on institutional finance over time and by intensity. Leveraging data spanning 19 years (1999-2017), I find no impact on overall revenue but suggestive evidence of upfront costs and slight…

There is substantial variation in the returns to a college degree. One determinant is whether a worker's employment is "matched" with their education. With a novel education-industry crosswalk and panel data on 295,000 graduates, we provide the first estimates of an education-industry match premium leveraging within-person variation in…

We use data from the Baccalaureate and Beyond Longitudinal Study and propensity score weighting methods to estimate the effect of a double major on bachelor's degree recipients' earnings within four years after college graduation. We classify each of a student's two majors in a double major combination as either "higher- or…

Increasingly, undergraduates take more than 4 years to complete a baccalaureate, a situation widely perceived as a waste of time and money, for students, their families, and taxpayers. We first identify several phenomena that result in a longer time to degree and document the frequency of such delays. Then, using nationally representative data…

Education-job match is often associated with enhanced well-being and career satisfaction, although existing research suggests that arts college graduates are less likely to experience education-job match than graduates of other disciplines. As research also increasingly suggests that student loan debt may influence college graduates' access to…

Pew Research Center conducted this study to better understand public views on the importance of a four-year college degree. The study also explores key trends in the economic outcomes of young adults among those who have and have not completed a four-year college degree. The analysis in this report is based on three data sources. The labor force,…

We explore the impact of excess credits, defined as additional credit hours accumulated by students beyond the required number of hours, on labor market outcomes. We consider whether additional credits have any impact on the labor market outcomes of job mismatch and income. Data are taken from the Baccalaureate and Beyond (B&B) study, a…

Community college baccalaureate (CCB) degree programs have become increasingly popular in recent years, with over 100 community colleges in 24 states currently offering at least one bachelor's degree program. Despite the growing prevalence of CCB degree programs, the financial implications of CCB adoption remain largely unknown. This study…

This is an applied econometric analysis of labour market data for the United States. We study the impact of several factors on overflow of overeducated employees into various job categories. We use panel data regression analysis with fixed and random effects. We also use data visualisation to investigate the overeducation trends during 2002-2016…

Dropout of university students can have negative consequences for students' futures as well as for university income. University systems with a multiple enrollment policy may offer students benefits, such as a second chance to graduate instead of dropping out. However, little is known about the outcome constellations (graduation, dropout) of…

We estimate the wage returns of undergraduates who attained their degree via Scotland's Further Education College Articulation policy. We contribute to existing literature by adding to the research on varying returns based on paths to acquiring a degree, while also being the first paper to examine the returns associated with Scottish Articulation.…

In this study we investigate the educational attainment of the labour force in the United States. Our data analysis, based on Bureau of Labour Statistics data in more than 700 occupations, produced two important findings. First, we observed that the Overeducation Ratio (share of employees that are overeducated), which began to rise in the United…