Tracking and using data to inform decisions pays off for college success programs on multiple levels. Having data allows program staff to monitor the progress of individual students and tailor support to their particular needs. It enables staff to understand the effectiveness of program activities and make improvements as necessary. Most…

Using a research project that explored the college-going strategies of Black high school students and educators during the 2020-2021 school year, this case study addresses research concerns that were raised in the context of COVID-19 and the 2020 global movement in defense of Black lives. More specifically, this case study addresses two types of…

Making college access and success more equitable at a national scale requires alternatives to intensive in-person modes of pre-college advising. Text-message advising campaigns are a promising intervention model for delivering college application and financial aid assistance affordably to large populations of college-intending, low-income…

In Switzerland, every student graduating from grammar school can begin to study at a university. This leads to high dropout rates. Although students' motivation is considered a strong predictor of performance, the development of motivation during students' transition from high school to university has rarely been investigated. Additionally, little…

According to a survey by NACAC and IC3 (International Career and College Counseling) Institute, 88 percent of Indian high school counselors believe their administration understands the importance of a dedicated career and college counseling program, and 70 percent agree that their school culture is supportive of counseling. However, many…

Comprehensive data are essential to answer questions from prospective students, parents, and private and public entities about the cost of college and students' return on investment, as well as to demonstrate how colleges and universities are helping to prepare the future workforce. An evolutionary data-collection process, efforts to improve the…

Since 2012, community colleges have made a considerable effort to increase student success and completion. Today, as much greater attention is being paid to drawing stronger linkages between education and workforce needs, institutions are becoming more strategic and deliberate in this work. In particular, many institutions are building stronger…

Educators and experts alike have come to a growing realization that academic factors alone do not tell the whole story of what it means to successfully navigate the educational system through high school and into higher education or the workplace. This national report from "Education Week" investigates the role that student engagement…

This report describes a follow-up qualitative study, conducted in 2006 by the Annenberg Institute for School Reform, of a small group of New York City high schools that were "beating the odds" in preparing low-performing 9th-grade students for timely high school graduation and college going. The 13 schools included two long-established…

As the demand for college graduates increases, it is critical (from both supply and demand perspectives) that students choose the postsecondary option that best meets their needs. Improved college readiness is an important first step to better informed choices about college. Parents and students need access to easy-to-understand data to make the…

The purpose of this guide is to help readers clarify their roles in the college access and success system and to identify how they might use data to create change for students. This guide shows how data can strengthen current programs and support broader changes that ease the path to college for students. This guide illuminates how a long-term…

Educators nationwide confront a troubling phenomenon: Increasingly, students leave high school unready for college, as evidenced by high rates of placement into remedial courses and low rates of college completion. Many students also lack either the attitudes or skills essential to succeed in a postsecondary setting, or knowledge of how to apply…

The Kentucky Educational Excellence Scholarship (KEES) is a broad-based initiative that provides the opportunity for traditional and nontraditional secondary school students and General Educational Development (GED) recipients to earn scholarships that may be used at Kentucky colleges, universities, and selected technical and vocational education…

More than 25% of new college students begin their higher education careers outside of the traditional fall start date (National Student Clearinghouse, 2012). This study examines the social, personal, and academic experiences of spring admits at a large, private research institution in the western United States. In this study, a spring admit is…

The purpose of this study was to examine the variables which influence a high school student to enroll in an engineering discipline versus a physical science discipline. Data was collected utilizing the High School Activities, Characteristics, and Influences Survey, which was administered to students who were freshmen in an engineering or physical…