ERIC Number: EJ1238270
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2020
Pages: 32
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0276-8739
EISSN: N/A
Can Light-Touch College-Going Interventions Make a Difference? Evidence from a Statewide Experiment in Michigan
Hyman, Joshua
Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, v39 n1 p159-190 Win 2020
I conduct a statewide experiment in Michigan with nearly 50,000 high-achieving high school seniors. Treated students are mailed a letter encouraging them to consider college and providing them with the web address of a college information website. I find that very high-achieving, low-income students, and very high-achieving, minority students are the most likely to navigate to the website. Small changes to letter content affect take-up. For example, highlighting college affordability induces 18 percent more students to the website than highlighting college choice, and 37 percent more than highlighting how to apply to college. I find a statistically precise zero impact on college enrollment among all students who were mailed the letter. However, low-income students experience a small increase in the probability that they enroll in college, driven by increases at four-year institutions. An examination of persistence through college, while imprecise, suggests that the students induced into college by the intervention persist at a lower rate than the inframarginal student.
Descriptors: High School Seniors, High Achievement, Information Dissemination, Low Income Students, Minority Group Students, Web Sites, Access to Information, Letters (Correspondence), Costs, Paying for College, College Choice, Enrollment, Probability, College Attendance, Academic Persistence, Program Effectiveness
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: High Schools; Secondary Education; Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Michigan
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
What Works Clearinghouse Reviewed: Meets Evidence Standards without Reservations
WWC Study Page: https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/study/89920