In 2013, the Washington Student Achievement Council proposed a statewide goal for educational attainment that called for 70 percent of the state's 25-44 year olds (i.e., early and mid-career residents) to have a postsecondary credential. The goal was adopted by the state legislature and signed into law by Governor Jay Inslee. In 2019, the…

The William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan (Direct Loan) program makes several types of federal student loans available to individuals to assist them with financing postsecondary education expenses. It represents the single largest source of federal financial assistance to support students' postsecondary educational pursuits. The U.S. Department of…

Investing in postsecondary education ought to be as clear and transparent as any other purchase, including clear pricing up-front that allows consumers to make well-founded school, degree, and borrowing choices that fit their personal circumstances, talents, and ambitions. Yet that is not how college financing works today. Instead, students and…

The purpose of this study was to explore the rural schooling experience of ten high school students attending a small high school located in a rural county in Indiana regarding college and postsecondary aspirations. Specifically, do they have a positive, negative, or neutral view of college? Who or what is influencing their perceptions, values,…

State postsecondary education data systems are vital information assets for policymakers, researchers, and the public. The Communities of Practice project (funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation) at the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association (SHEEO) builds upon SHEEO's ongoing efforts to measure the capacity and effective…

This agenda is Kentucky's plan to create a more inclusive, innovative higher education system that serves students of all ages, backgrounds, and beliefs. It reaffirms the goal for 60% of Kentucky adults to have a postsecondary credential by the year 2030 and builds on unprecedented gains in degree production over the last decade. It responds to…

This First Look publication provides the first results of the 2017-18 National Postsecondary Student Aid Study, Administrative Collection (NPSAS:18-AC), the most comprehensive national study of student financing of postsecondary education in the United States. The study includes information for about 245,000 undergraduate students and 21,000…

This Summary presents selected findings from "2017-18 National Postsecondary Student Aid Study, Administrative Collection (NPSAS:18-AC): First Look at Student Financial Aid Estimates for 2017-18. NCES 2021-476rev." The study includes information for about 245,000 undergraduate students and 21,000 graduate students attending 1,900…

At least 36 million adults in the United States have earned some postsecondary education credit without obtaining a credential. Research suggests these adults, are often referred to as those with some college, but no degree, are well worth the investments needed to help them return and complete their education. Adults in this population frequently…

The El Dorado Promise program is a universal, first dollar Promise program that guarantees a full tuition scholarship to students who attend the El Dorado School District from grades K-12, and a partial scholarship for those enrolled for at least 9th through 12th grade. We use a difference-indifferences framework to examine the impact of the El…

Sallie Mae partnered with Ipsos, a global independent market research company, to introduce this new study. The study focuses on how high school students and their parents are planning for higher education. In addition, it examines the value students and their families place on higher education and, among those who plan to attend, how they are…

Every year, the BC Student Outcomes Program collects feedback from former students who took post-secondary programs. Student feedback is essential to maintain quality and relevance in the education system. In 2022, over 28,500 former students were surveyed; key results from those surveys are presented in this report. 90% of the former…

The members of the high school Class of 2019 who enter the labor market right after graduating have better job prospects than young people who graduated from high school into the aftermath of the recession, a result of the steady (if slow) progression of the economic recovery. This study analyzes data on recent young high school graduates (ages…

As part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act enacted last year, federal lawmakers gave parents more flexibility with their own savings for their children's education. Now, families that save money for college using what are commonly known as 529 college savings plans (named after Section 529 of the Internal Revenue Code) can apply some of those savings to…

This qualitative study extends the research on postsecondary delay by examining the college experiences of six male nontraditional students from the North Texas area who purposefully postponed college education for 3 years after high school graduation to fulfill religious commitments. Unlike the majority of delayers, the participants successfully…