Media ranking of colleges is often superficial and only further confuses families and prospective students. In addition, some colleges are excluding students to present a "selective" profile. Rationality in admissions can return, when parents and students become knowledgeable about the process, counselors interpret changes, and colleges give…

An institution should know what its students expect of it and should perform post-enrollment evaluations of the extent to which those expectations are realized. A questionnaire with 30 factors based on Chadwick and Ward's attributes scale was sent to beginning students at a large Midwestern university. (MLW)

Discusses findings from a survey of students who attended Montana's tribally controlled community colleges from 1981 to 1985, investigating influences on college choice, personal and educational goals upon enrolling, whether the college assisted students in meeting their goals, and the degree of student satisfaction with programs and services.…

A survey of 784 minority group applicants to the University of Massachusetts at Amherst who were accepted but did not enroll indicates that prospective students are very aware of racial incidents on campus and made college choice decisions based in part on that information. Black students were particularly affected. (MSE)

Data from 1974-75 and 1983-84 Canadian national studies are used to explore the impact of gender and parental education on student decisions to enroll full- or part-time, choose college or university, and enroll in different fields. Results show both factors play decisive roles, with family background influencing men and women differentially. (MSE)

A model of college student choice for male and female ninth graders using LISREL is examined. Variables examined included parents' expectation regarding higher education for their children, parents' savings for college, students' discussion of college with their parents, and students' aspiration for postsecondary education. (Author/MLW)

High school students (n=322) participating in a year-long study of the college selection decision-making process showed greater certainty and readiness to make a decision over the year, but rated the stressfulness of the decision high throughout. Students evidently saw this decision as a life-framing one. (SLD)

A multi-institutional study of 263 first-time college freshmen investigated the effects on students' social and academic integration of having expectations for college remain unmet. Results are discussed in terms of implications for enrollment management and the linkage of theories concerning college choice and student departure. (Author/MSE)

This article presents issues for consideration by planning teams making transition decisions for students with traumatic brain injuries. Factors in selecting a postsecondary setting are outlined, such as physical accessibility, living arrangements, academic programs and support services, social and personal support systems, and career/vocational…

A marketing model of enrollment management focusing on relationships between changes in the macroenvironment, target market student preferences, college marketing mix, and enrollment is presented. Application of the model illustrates how institutions can offset, enhance, or neutralize potential enrollment effects of job market changes through…

Focuses on relationships between high school graduates' personal characteristics and the nature of the postsecondary institutions they attend. Suggests that within the matching process is a sorting mechanism that reinforces nonmeritocratic tendencies. Analyzes national data for the high school class of 1980. Finds, that socioeconomic background…

Response of colleges and universities to surveys from publishers of college guides and popular newsstand magazines is discussed, and considerations in developing a standard survey response are explored. These include the advantages and limitations of standardized information formats, how much of the information reaches prospective students, how…

A survey of 297 college-bound high school seniors and parents examined techniques for gathering information about postsecondary education and institutions. Students were designated as "highly diversified" or "less diversified" searchers; background characteristics and information-gathering behaviors of each were identified. High diversification…

This study uses multilevel modeling to examine, after taking student-level predictors of enrollment into account, the effects of state public policies on the type of institution high school graduates attend. Four types of state policies (direct appropriations, tuition, financial aid, and K-12 academic preparation) influence the type of college…

Improving access to college for Latinos and other underrepresented minorities is a serious policy dilemma, particularly in states where they constitute large and growing numbers of the college-age population. Latinos as a group face numerous obstacles to college attendance, including a lack of knowledge about college and how to get there,…