Population: Young Adults

College Students

MDRC runs and evaluates programs to help college students — particularly, those in community colleges — complete their degrees and credentials and overcome barriers to academic success.

The Latest

Report

Building on the GED

Bridge-to-college programs aim to help people complete high school and enroll in postsecondary education. This evaluation of one such program at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College in Green Bay, WI finds that it helped more students earn their GEDs and enroll in college courses.

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Issue Focus

Using Insights from Behavioral Science to Help College Students Stay Enrolled

Students navigating the COVID-19 pandemic are facing new practical and financial concerns about continuing their studies. Colleges can encourage continued enrollment and boost student success by sending well-designed messages that address those concerns, simplify information, and offer support. This Issue Focus highlights proven strategies for communicating effectively.

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Key Documents

Testimony

Testimony on Opportunities to Improve Student Success in the Higher Education Act

Presented Before the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

On August 5, Lashawn Richburg-Hayes testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions on what research evidence suggests about the best ways to improve the academic success of low-income college students.

Unlocking the Gate

What We Know About Improving Developmental Education

One of the greatest challenges that community colleges face in their efforts to increase graduation rates is improving the success of students in their developmental, or remedial, education programs. Emphasizing results from experimental and quasi-experimental studies, this literature review identifies the most promising approaches for revising the structure, curriculum, or delivery of developmental education and suggests areas for future innovations in developmental education practice and research.

Doubling Graduation Rates

Three-Year Effects of CUNY’s Accelerated Study in Associate Programs (ASAP) for Developmental Education Students

The City University of New York’s comprehensive ASAP program nearly doubles the three-year graduation rate for developmental education students in community college – at a lower cost-per-degree than regular services. ASAP also increases rates of transfer to four-year colleges.

The Higher Education Randomized Controlled Trial Focus Area: Developmental Education Instruction and Curricula Student Services Financial Aid Population: Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Tutoring, Learning Communities, Counseling/Advising, Financial Incentives, Financial Aid, Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Developmental Education, Accelerated Programs Locations: Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas, Virginia, Washington	Men of Color College Achievement (MoCCA) Project Focus Area: Student Services Population: Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Tutoring, Mentoring, Counseling/Advising, Curricular/Instructional Reforms Locations: Maryland	Scaling Up College Completion Efforts for Student Success (SUCCESS) Focus Area: Financial Aid Student Services Financial Incentives Population: Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Counseling/Advising, Financial Incentives, Financial Aid Locations: California, Indiana, New Jersey, Ohio
MDRC Center for Effective Career and Technical Education Focus Area: High School Transition to Postsecondary High School Dropouts Youth Employment Job Retention and Advancement Population: Young Adults Populations with Barriers to Employment Low-Income Populations Intervention: Career & Technical Education, Counseling/Advising, Job Training, Employment Services, Dual-Enrollment/Bridge Programs	Multiple Measures Assessment Project Focus Area: Developmental Education Institutional Reform Population: Young Adults Intervention: Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Developmental Education Locations: Minnesota, Wisconsin	The Cascades Job Corps College and Career Academy Pilot Evaluation Focus Area: Youth Employment Student Services Job Retention and Advancement High School Dropouts Population: Young Adults Children and Schools Low-Income Populations Intervention: Sectoral Training, Student Services, Classroom Services, Career & Technical Education, Counseling/Advising, GED Completion, Job Training, Employment Services Locations: Washington
Latino Academic Transfer and Institutional Degree Opportunities (LATIDO) Project Focus Area: Student Services Population: Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Counseling/Advising Locations: California	College Promise Success Initiative Focus Area: Financial Aid Student Services Population: Young Adults Low-Income Populations Intervention: Student Services, Counseling/Advising, Financial Incentives, Financial Aid Locations: California, Michigan, Oregon, Rhode Island	The Finish Line: Graduation by Design Focus Area: Institutional Reform Instruction and Curricula Population: Young Adults Intervention: Behavioral Interventions
New World of Work Focus Area: Instruction and Curricula Population: Young Adults Intervention: Career & Technical Education, Job Training, Curricular/Instructional Reforms Locations: California	Text Ed Demonstration Project Focus Area: Transition to Postsecondary Student Services Population: Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Behavioral Interventions, Counseling/Advising	Career Ready Internships Focus Area: Financial Aid Population: Young Adults Intervention: Career & Technical Education, Job Training, Financial Aid, Employment Services Locations: Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin
The Encouraging Additional Summer Enrollment (EASE) Project Focus Area: Financial Aid Financial Incentives Population: Young Adults Intervention: Behavioral Interventions, Financial Incentives, Financial Aid Locations: Ohio	Detroit Promise Path Focus Area: Financial Aid Student Services Population: Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Counseling/Advising, Financial Incentives, Financial Aid Locations: Michigan	Evaluating the Impact of Integrated Planning and Advising for Student Success (iPASS) Focus Area: Institutional Reform Student Services Population: Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Counseling/Advising Locations: California, North Carolina, Pennsylvania
Comparative Case Study of Winning Talent Dividend Cities Focus Area: Institutional Reform Financial Aid Student Services Population: Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Counseling/Advising, Financial Aid, Developmental Education, Accelerated Programs Locations: Florida, Nebraska, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, Virginia	Evaluating Replications of CUNY’s Accelerated Study in Associate Programs (ASAP) Focus Area: Developmental Education Financial Aid Student Services Instruction and Curricula Population: Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Tutoring, Learning Communities, Counseling/Advising, Financial Aid, Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Developmental Education, Accelerated Programs Locations: New York, Ohio	GED Bridge: Strengthening the Link into College and Careers Focus Area: Transition to Postsecondary High School Dropouts Population: Young Adults Intervention: Sectoral Training, Career & Technical Education, GED Completion Locations: Wisconsin
The Center for the Analysis of Postsecondary Readiness (CAPR) Focus Area: Developmental Education Instruction and Curricula Student Services Population: Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Counseling/Advising, Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Developmental Education	Addressing Students' Remedial Needs: The Evaluation of CUNY Start and Other Strategies Focus Area: Developmental Education Student Services Instruction and Curricula Population: Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Tutoring, Counseling/Advising, Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Developmental Education Locations: New York	Dana Center Mathematics Pathways Focus Area: Developmental Education Instruction and Curricula Population: Young Adults Intervention: Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Developmental Education Locations: Texas
Developmental Education Acceleration Project Focus Area: Developmental Education Instruction and Curricula Population: Young Adults Intervention: Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Developmental Education, Accelerated Programs Locations: Texas	Aid Like A Paycheck Focus Area: Financial Aid Population: Young Adults Intervention: Financial Aid Locations: California, Illinois, Texas	Community College to Career–California Focus Area: Student Services Population: Young Adults Intervention: Counseling/Advising Locations: California
Evaluation of Accelerated Study in Associate Programs (ASAP) for Developmental Education Students Focus Area: Developmental Education Financial Aid Student Services Population: Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Tutoring, Learning Communities, Counseling/Advising, Financial Aid, Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Developmental Education, Accelerated Programs Locations: New York	Opening Doors Focus Area: Financial Aid Student Services Developmental Education Instruction and Curricula Financial Incentives Population: Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Tutoring, Learning Communities, Counseling/Advising, Financial Incentives, Financial Aid, Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Developmental Education Locations: California, Louisiana, New York, Ohio

Great Lakes College and Careers Pathways Partnership Focus Area: High School Transition to Postsecondary Instruction and Curricula Youth Employment Population: Children and Schools Young Adults Intervention: Classroom Services, Career & Technical Education, Job Training, Curricular/Instructional Reforms Locations: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin	Developmental Education Initiative Focus Area: Developmental Education Institutional Reform Population: Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Developmental Education, Accelerated Programs Locations: Connecticut, Florida, North Carolina, Ohio, Texas, Virginia	LaGuardia's GED Bridge to Health and Business Program Focus Area: Transition to Postsecondary High School Dropouts Population: Young Adults Intervention: Sectoral Training, Career & Technical Education, GED Completion Locations: New York
The Getting Ready for Success Pilot Program Focus Area: High School Transition to Postsecondary Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Counseling/Advising, Financial Incentives, Financial Aid, Developmental Education, Dual-Enrollment/Bridge Programs Locations: Washington	Completion by Design Evaluation Focus Area: Institutional Reform Population: Young Adults Locations: Florida, North Carolina, Ohio	Performance-Based Scholarship Demonstration Focus Area: Financial Aid Financial Incentives Population: Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Tutoring, Counseling/Advising, Financial Incentives, Financial Aid, Developmental Education Locations: Arizona, California, Florida, Louisiana, New Mexico, New York, Ohio
Texas Developmental Summer Bridge Study Focus Area: High School Transition to Postsecondary Developmental Education Student Services Population: Children and Schools Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Counseling/Advising, Financial Incentives, Financial Aid, Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Developmental Education, Dual-Enrollment/Bridge Programs, Accelerated Programs Locations: Texas	Achieving the Dream Focus Area: Developmental Education Institutional Reform Population: Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Learning Communities, Counseling/Advising, Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Developmental Education Locations: Florida, Massachusetts, New Mexico, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, Washington	Dreamkeepers and Angel Fund Emergency Financial Aid Focus Area: Financial Aid Student Services Population: Young Adults Intervention: Financial Aid Locations: Arizona, Florida, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, South Dakota, Texas, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin
Learning Communities Demonstration Focus Area: Instruction and Curricula Institutional Reform Developmental Education Population: Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Learning Communities, Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Developmental Education Locations: California, Florida, Maryland, New York, Texas	Student Support Partnership Integrating Resources and Education (SSPIRE) Focus Area: Institutional Reform Student Services Population: Young Adults Intervention: Case Management, Dual-Enrollment/Bridge Programs, Learning Communities, Student Services Locations: California

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