This Users Manual is the supporting documentation for the Public Use Data File from the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972 (NLS). The data file contains certain merged data from the base year (1972), and first, second, and third follow-up NLS surveys for 22,652 cases. This volume contains only appendices K through Q, as…

The basic design of the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972 (NLS) called for repeated surveys of a statistical sample of the Class of 1972. Each sample member was followed so as to build a historical database that would allow the investigation of the complex developmental paths that occur in the transition years from high…

A major purpose of the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972 (NLS) was to provide a data base for studies concerned with the relationship between high school experience and experience in the years immediately following graduation. This methodological report is designed to facilitate use of the data base. The sample was…

This Department of Education (ED) Tabulation provides data in six tables on the effect of delay in entering postsecondary education (PE) on degree attainment for 1972, 1980, and 1982 high school graduates. The data compare the patterns of delay in PE among these three cohorts by pattern of enrollment, type of institution, and selected student…

Patterns of delay in entering 4-year, 2-year, and less-than-2-year postsecondary institutions (PIs) for 1972, 1980, and 1982 high school graduates are described. Two types of delay were studied: (1) delay in beginning at a particular type of institution, and (2) stopping out for a period before returning (i.e., leaving school for over 2 months or…

The data presented in this Department of Education (ED) Tabulation compare how the 1972, 1980, and 1982 high school graduate cohorts differ by type of program, type of institution, and time of entry into postsecondary education (PE). Three tables provide information for each cohort on enrollment in PE by type of postsecondary institution. Three…

This planning conference was one in a series of such conferences aimed at providing continuous guidance for the development of the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972 (NLS) a study designed to discover what happens to young adults after they leave high school, and to relate this information to earlier educational…

A group of high school self-reported dropouts and a group of simulated high school dropouts were compared with graduates in their participation rates, efforts required for data collection, and the overall quality of their responses in the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972. The results indicate that dropouts are less…

This report presents a taxonomy of precisely what is studied, where, and by whom, in universities, community colleges, and postsecondary trade schools in the United States. It is based on data from the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972 (NLS-72) and the High School and Beyond/Sophomores (HSB/So) survey of high school…

This Department of Education (ED) Tabulation presents a wide range of data on patterns of stopping out and dropping out from postsecondary education (PE) that 1972, 1980, and 1982 high school graduates experienced. The data compare how these respective cohorts differ by examining the percentage who attend continuously; they also describe patterns…

A third followup survey within a National Longitudinal Study (NLS) of the high school class of 1972 finds that there is little difference in group variability in survey response when considering background characteristics, while significant differences in response rates are found when considering the group patterns of response to prior…

A review of the literature on the validity and reliability of survey data is presented prior to an analysis of the reliability of selected questions in the Second Followup Questionnaire of the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972 (NLS). The reliability study includes an evaluation of test-retest reliability as a function of…

This addendum describes the nature, rationale, and results of the second cleaning and revision of the National Longitudinal Study of 1972 (NLS-72) Postsecondary Education Transcript Files (PETS). This project, conducted for nearly 3 years, followed an initial cleaning and reduction in 1987, which came about as a reaction to the idiosyncratic…

Reviews the usefulness of existing national longitudinal studies in determining the effects of vocational education. It is clear that there is no unified vocational education program and that students in these programs differ markedly from those in other curricula. (SK)

The National Longitudinal Study (NLS) sample and data collection efforts are described and the nature of information available for each data collection effort is briefly reviewed. Possible implications and limitations that the NLS database has for use in graduate training programs in higher education are also investigated. (SF)