This report examines the results of the field test for the base year of the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 (HSLS:09). The general purposes of the field test were, in anticipation of the base-year full-scale effort, to test instruments, forms, and procedures; to experiment with different approaches to questionnaire content and survey…

The National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972 (NLS) employs a combination of mail, telephone, and personal interview data-gathering techniques. The NLS quality control process begins with editing each returned questionnaire to determine if certain key items are answered and if responses are consistent. If the respondent failed…

The major emphasis of the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972 (NLS) has been directed toward individuals in the 1972 high school graduating class. Consequently, sampling parameters were established to ensure student representation, and the bulk of data collected were individual-level data. School-level data exist on a…

The purpose of this user's manual is to document the procedures used to collect and process postsecondary school transcripts for members of the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972 who had attended any postsecondary institutions since leaving high school. In addition, this manual will provide researchers with the technical…

Meant to study post secondary educational and vocational activities, the National Longitudinal Survey of the High School Class of 1972 (NLS) is reported to have consistently succeeded in overcoming diminishing response rates and sample attrition found in other longitudinal surveys. The purpose of understanding the focus and experiences affecting…

The fourth mail and personal interview followup survey from October 1979 to May 1980 is reported as part of the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972 (NLS). The report is methodological, historical and descriptive in nature, but contains no analytical results. Reference to earlier reports is provided in determining post…

Adolescent parenthood was investigated based on a large panel study known as the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972 (NLS) which has tracked over 22,000 adolescents who are now in their early 20's and have experienced many of the near-term consequences of early parenthood. Procedures for creating variables that mark entry…

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…

This paper presents a fixed effects model on the impact of individual high schools on adult earnings. This model not only captures the effects on observed and unobserved characteristics of high school on earnings, but also can control for selection bias resulting from correlation between school quality and student ability. The principal data used…

Data collection activities for the second follow-up survey of the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972 involved contact with over 22,000 graduates. During the period from July 1974 through June 1975, survey activities included the mailout of newsletters to sample members, telephone tracing of those individuals whose…

This manual was produced to familiarize data users with the procedures followed in data collection and processing of the fifth follow-up survey of the National Longitudinal Survey of the High School Class of 1972 (NLS-72) and to provide documentation for use of the file. The data file is a computerized data base, which is available on magnetic…

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…

This supporting statement accompanied the first followup questionnaire for the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972, when it was submitted for government clearance. The first part of the statement gives the background, uses, and justification of the survey; the largest part describes the plans for the first follow-up…

This is a report on the data collection activities of the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972(NLS). This phase of the operation involved the first follow-up contact with the 22,654 seniors selected for participation in this study. The fieldwork for the first follow-up was scheduled between July 1973 and January 1974; it…

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)