Register Now for Oct. 5 Webinar on Findings
Now
more than ever, a college education is vital for economic independence
and upward mobility. And with over 45 percent of all undergraduates
enrolled in a community college, these institutions will continue to be
critically important in helping individuals achieve their education
goals as well as meeting the labor-market needs of our nation.
A new brief from ACE’s Center for Policy Research and Strategy (CPRS), Identifying Predictors of Credential Completion Among Beginning Community College Students (3 MB PDF),
illuminates the factors that lead recent high school graduates who
began their postsecondary education in a community college to earn a
credential and offers recommendations to help increase students’
likelihood of doing so. The brief was produced with support from
Hobsons.
The paper’s key findings are that earning a
strong college GPA early on and completing more credits in the first
year are the strongest overall predictors of postsecondary credential
completion. A good high school GPA, earning dual-enrollment credits, and
taking a college entrance exam before leaving high school were also
found to be positive indicators. Women were more likely to graduate than
men and in general, students with higher levels of socioeconomic status
were more likely to earn a credential.
The paper found that the frequency with which
students met with an academic advisor was not associated with
significant changes in the probability of earning a credential. This
finding suggests a further need to examine and rethink advising and
student support services.
Drawing from the results of the study and
previous research, the report also offers resources and several key
recommendations for policy and practice.
Hobsons and ACE will host a webinar on Oct. 5
at 2:00 p.m. EDT to review the findings and discuss strategies for
students who enroll in community college directly after high school. The
confirmed speakers are:
- Jonathan Turk, author and senior policy research analyst, CPRS
- Ellen Wagner, vice president of research, Hobsons
- David Schuler, superintendent, Township High School District 214 in Illinois
Click here for more information about the paper and to register for the webinar.
The research brief analyzes data from the
Education Longitudinal Study of 2002, a nationally representative study
that tracked students who began 10th grade in 2002 over a 10-year
period. It is the second in a series about community college students by
ACE and supported by Hobsons. The first paper, Improving the Odds: An Empirical Look at the Factors That Influence Upward Transfer (18 MB PDF), was released earlier this year.