A primary goal of the U.S. Department of Education's Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) Blueprint for Reform is to improve the college readiness of high school graduates (U.S. Department of Education 2010). College readiness is a complex benchmark and has been measured in several ways, including transcript analysis (Adelman 2006) and…

Despite the prevalence of charter schools in the United States, few experimental studies evaluate the impact of charter school attendance on students in the early elementary grades. Using data from a randomized lottery in which kindergarten students and their parents applied to two oversubscribed and well-established charter schools in Denver,…

No issue in American higher education is more contentious than that of race-based affirmative action. In light of the ongoing debate around the topic and recent Supreme Court rulings, affirmative action policy may be facing further changes. As an alternative to race-based affirmative action, some analysts suggest affirmative action policies based…

The U.S. Department of Education tested a set of promising, low-cost advising strategies, called "Find the Fit," designed to help low-income and "first generation" students enrolled in the Department's Upward Bound program choose more selective colleges and stay in until they complete a degree. About 200 Upward Bound projects…

This article defines the term "under matching" as the behavior in which mostly less-affluent, highly qualified high school graduates choose not to enroll at an institution that matches their qualifications--behavior which threatens their chances of earning a degree. The supporting research--rigorous, compelling, and…

Successful institutions focus on the needs of their students and strive to improve the quality of the educational experience. Student satisfaction assessments are one of the preeminent ways to measure how effectively institutions are meeting the expectations of students. Private, selective institutions (PSIs) have rarely been studied in terms of…

This paper provides an econometric analysis of the matriculation decisions made by students accepted to Williams College, one of the nation's most highly selective colleges and universities. Using data for the Williams classes of 2008 through 2012 to estimate a yield model, we find that--conditional on the student applying to and being accepted by…

This study focused on monitoring the influx of senior high school students and as of November 4, 2017, the Assessment, Counseling, Alumni and Placement (ACAP) Center has 341 examinees from different high schools in the province. Based on the results of the survey, the top 5 schools are Angeles City National Trade School, Angeles City National High…

The purpose of this study was to examine structural diversity at Catholic colleges; more specifically, the variation in the student body diversity characteristics of a sample of freshman students matriculated at Catholic colleges. For the purpose of this article, diversity characteristics include background characteristics associated with student…

This study examines unique patterns of college engagement and outcomes among Latino undergraduate students attending highly selective institutions in comparison with those from other racial/ethnic groups. The study also identifies predictors of select college outcomes--that is, cognitive, affective, and civic outcomes--for this population.…

This project explored ways in which student selection in nursing can be developed. Original research was undertaken throughout the United Kingdom using qualitative interviews with a range of academic staff and partners from practice. A conceptual framework was produced which identified five categories which can confidently be seen as…

This study examined (1) average distances traveled to attend college, (2) presumptive college eligibility, (3) differences between two-year and four-year college enrollment, (4) differences in enrollment related to differences in colleges' selectivity, and (5) degree of "undermatching" (i.e., enrolling in a college less selective than…

Despite a diverse body of literature on college student retention, studies focusing on small, private, selective liberal arts colleges are limited. This study utilized a mixed methodology beginning with logistic regression analyses and followed with a qualitative inquiry that included interviews with students who had not persisted. While variables…

Work-based learning in college--in the form of internships, cooperative education programs, and apprenticeships--sit at the crossroads of education and employment. It can play a crucial role in shaping a student's transition from school to work. This study explores the extent to which college students participate in work-based learning and the…

Research evidence for the big-fish-little-pond effect (BFLPE) has demonstrated that attending high-ability schools has a negative effect on academic self-concept. Utilizing multilevel modeling with the 2003 Program for International Student Assessment database, the present investigation evaluated the generalizability and robustness of the BFLPE…