Today, many full-time students spend one, two, or more additional years completing a 2-year associate or 4-year bachelor degree. In order to reduce this time frame, many institutions are utilizing a 15 to Finish campaign to encourage full-time students to enroll in 15 credits each semester. The first purpose of this study was to examine if there…

Objective: Problems with credit mobility, or the transfer of credits from a sending to a receiving institution, may be one reason why community college transfer students have low rates of bachelor's degree completion. This study investigates different policy approaches to credit mobility and how college staff and students experience transfer at…

Many students enter community college underprepared for college-level math and are placed into developmental elementary algebra without consideration if the algebra will provide a foundation for their needed college-level math course. Large percentages of those students are unable to succeed in the developmental course and, therefore, are unable…

College Preparatory Programs with Exams (CPPEs) include academically-rigorous high school classes that culminate in standardized exam-based assessments. Students take the classes as part of their high school schedule and apply them toward their graduation requirements, typically whether or not they take the exams at the end. Without the exam,…

Often considered the gateway to the middle class in the United States, community colleges are struggling to find ways to support all students in career planning and preparation. Unfortunately, increasing numbers of first generation students who enter community colleges through the door of open access, place into developmental education (remedial)…

This report provides information on the 15 Iowa community colleges for the fall of 2021 including: (1) Students; (2) Student Demographics; (3) Academics; (4) Program Type; (5) Transfer Major Programs; (6) Career Clusters; (7) Online Enrollment; (8) Joint Enrollment; (9) Immediate Enrollment; and (10) Enrollment Projections. [For the 2020 report,…

In the classic game of "Chutes and Ladders," the player can see square 100--the finish line--but it is not easy to get there. The player may climb one ladder only to land on the wrong spot and be sent spiraling down a chute. In the game, players are aiming for the blue ribbon on square 100, but for students enrolling in college, the…

The California Community Colleges (CCC) are central to the economic strength and social mobility of California and its residents. They serve the majority of undergraduates in California. Each year, over 2 million students attend one of the 116 community colleges across the state, including the online campus--Cal Bright. Like "Chutes and…

Successful dual enrollment programs begin with strong, collaborative partnerships between community colleges and their local K-12 school systems. They also require clearly articulated agreements that spell out what each entity's responsibilities. For example: Who's going to teach the courses? Will the instruction take place at the high school or…

The purpose of this study was to measure and compare five preconditions for success of African American male community college students at community colleges by determining if there is a relationship between a) GPA and credits earned, utilizing Wood and Harris' (2012; 2016) Community College Survey of Men (CCSM, 2014) and Community College Success…

This paper reviews recent evidence on the labor market returns to credit accumulation, certificates, and associate degrees from community colleges. Evidence is collated from estimates of earnings gaps across college students using large-scale, statewide administrative datasets from eight states. Six of these states were partners of the Center for…

This study investigates the use of transfer guides to help students identify transferrable prerequisite credits for academic majors. Employing administrative data of students enrolled in Ohio community colleges, I examine the impact of these curricular roadmaps, called Transfer Assurance Guides (TAG), which were featured in reforms of the state's…

The report expands knowledge about Texas Latino students while providing higher education institutions and policymakers across the country with actionable information to help more Latino students graduate. Stakeholders in Texas have diverse strategies to improve the pathways to college completion. However, too often discussion on transfer pathways…

College students have a better chance of succeeding in school when they receive high-quality advising. High-quality advising, when characterized by frequent communications between advisers and students, early outreach to students showing signs of academic or nonacademic struggles, and personalized guidance that addresses individual student needs,…

Online instruction, including online instruction that is blended with traditional in-person instruction, offers students more flexibility in the timing of their coursework and may deepen students' understanding of the material. By leveraging online courseware, colleges have the potential to expand college access, reduce costs, recruit a more…