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Overview
As young people make the transition to adulthood, one of the most important decisions they make concerns their postsecondary education. In today’s U.S. economy, obtaining postsecondary education is critical to achieving better economic and personal opportunities as adults, and a college degree is quickly becoming a prerequisite for admission to the American middle class. The U.S. Department of Labor forecasts that as many as 70 percent of all new jobs will require a postsecondary credential, yet an estimated 60 million working adults currently lack one. Higher education benefits individuals in many ways, including creating better employment opportunities, higher earnings, and better health. Society benefits, too: Economic growth is fostered, leading to lower poverty and crime rates and higher levels of civic participation. It is no surprise, then, that policymakers are concerned with improving rates of college attendance and completion, particularly among low-income students.
For low-income people, in particular, community colleges offer an important pathway out of poverty and into better jobs. But a host of factors, including inadequate financial aid or student services and poor developmental (or remedial) classes, can keep them from enrolling in and completing postsecondary education. For instance, according to the Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study, only 31 percent of students who entered community college in 1995-1996 with the intention of earning a degree or certificate had met their goal six years later. Completion rates are particularly low for students in developmental courses, who comprise the majority of new students at many community colleges. Finding effective strategies to increase access to and retention in college is critical to improving the lives of low-income individuals.
MDRC has embarked on a research agenda aimed at discovering how to dramatically increase the success of low-income young adults in school, the labor market, and life. Reflecting the importance of community colleges for low-income individuals, MDRC’s work to date focuses on initiatives that are designed to increase persistence and academic achievement among students at these institutions.
Key Documents on Higher Education
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