Merit aid is an increasingly important component of college scholarships, but policymakers are concerned that merit aid is often given to students who would enroll anyway. As a baseline we use a regression discontinuity (RD) framework to test an institution-level merit aid program at a public research university and find that the merit aid program…

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the nation's community colleges and students are facing a host of concerns about the upcoming 2020 fall semester. Many students are reconsidering whether they will pursue higher education full time, take online courses, or enroll at all. Students who have lost their jobs or have family members facing…

Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) verification and its role in summer melt is examined in this brief. "Summer melt" is when high school seniors who appear ready to go to college the fall following graduation do not enroll. The study revealed one-third of Houston Independent School District (HISD) college-intending students…

In 2019, the Washington Student Achievement Council adopted a Strategic Framework to better understand how state higher education policy contributes to campus and student success. The framework organizes the policy work into four areas deemed essential to achieve the 70 percent goal: (1) Affordability; (2) Enrollment; (3) Completion; and (4)…

This study examines the relationship between Cycle 1 of the Houston Independent School District (HISD) College Success Initiative and students' preparation for, enrollment in, and persistence in college. Rates of FAFSA submission, two-year applications, four-year applications, and on-time college enrollment all significantly increased during Cycle…

Local-level, place-based scholarships -- synonymous with "promise" scholarships -- are a policy strategy to improve college completion in the United States by directing financial aid to students in a particular school, district, or geographical area. There are currently upwards of 90 place-based scholarship programs across the US, most…

Objective: This study examined how a set of theoretically derived factors predicted the educational attainment outcomes of Latina/o community college students. The guiding research question was, "What precollege and background characteristics, college experiences, and environmental pull factors uniquely predict persistence, certificate or…

There is currently a great deal of interest in the potential of reductions in or elimination of the cost of college attendance for students (here referred to as college subsidies) to increase equitable access to higher education. A number of Democratic presidential candidates have advanced proposals for such programs. However, because colleges and…

Postsecondary education is widely seen as a necessity in the modern economy. Yet students at community colleges often face steep odds when it comes to completing a degree. Community colleges serve many low-income and first-generation students as well as students of color, all of whom must contend with many obstacles to success. At the same time,…

This report is a compendium of college access-related data that is intended to provide a detailed overview of Baltimore City Schools (City Schools) students' experiences preparing for, enrolling in, and completing postsecondary education. Although constrained in its scope, this report is offered in light of the fact that, more and more,…

Since 1998, the Iowa Department of Education's Division of Community Colleges and Workforce Preparation (division) has compiled and published "The Annual Condition of Iowa's Community Colleges," commonly known as the "Condition Report." The intent of this report is to provide clear, objective data about Iowa's community…

Postsecondary education is widely seen as a necessity in the modern economy. Yet students at community colleges often face steep odds when it comes to completing a degree. Community colleges serve many low-income and first-generation students as well as students of color, all of whom must contend with many obstacles to success. At the same time,…

Although diversity in higher education has continued to increase over the past 20 years, colleges and universities continue to enroll Black, Latinx and American Indian students in bachelor's programs at low rates; additionally, more selective institutions and high-demand fields of study are less likely to enroll these students, and they often are…

This Statistics in Brief examines military service among 2002 high school sophomores and the postsecondary enrollment outcomes of those who had served in the military as of 2012, some 8 years after most completed high school in 2004. This cohort had just begun 10th grade when the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, occurred. As of 2012, some…

Since 1998, the Iowa Department of Education's Division of Community Colleges and Workforce Preparation (division) has compiled and published "The Annual Condition of Iowa's Community Colleges," commonly known as the "Condition Report." The intent of this report is to provide clear, objective data about Iowa's community…