Today, nearly 43.1 million people are stopped out of college without a credential. Of these, 37.6 million are working age adults under age 65. As states look to increase the skills of their labor forces and institutions confront changing demographic realities, re-engaging with these "Some College, No Credential" (SCNC) individuals has…

The fall 2023 and spring 2024 undergraduate enrollment increases, marking the first growth since the COVID-19 pandemic, show signs of a post-pandemic turnaround for higher education. However, a significant share of current undergraduates will eventually disengage from college before earning a degree or other credential. They will join tens of…

More than 100,000 adults with some college but no degree (SCND) have reconnected with higher education at Tennessee community colleges over the past decade. However, only 21% graduated within three years of reconnecting. In Pathways to Success for Students with Some College, No Degree, the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) seeks to build a body of…

We ask whether patterns of racial/ethnic and socioeconomic stratification in educational attainment are amplified or attenuated when we take a longer view of educational careers. We propose a model of "staged advantage" to understand how educational inequalities evolve over the life course. Distinct from cumulative advantage, staged…

We ask whether patterns of racial ethnic and socioeconomic stratification in educational attainment are amplified or attenuated when we take a longer view of educational careers. We propose a model of staged advantage to understand how educational inequalities evolve over the life course. Distinct from cumulative advantage, staged advantage…

The new majority of college students have adult responsibilities, such as parenting, earning a living, and paying for college. Unfortunately, adult students are often treated as an afterthought by colleges and policymakers. Over the last 20 years, more than 37 million students have left without receiving a degree that would greatly improve their…

Community colleges and universities have traditionally functioned independently, serving their respective markets and offering different programs and credentials. Growing populations and workforce needs have inspired institutions of higher education to challenge their traditional roles to provide added pathways and opportunities for students. One…

This study examined the transition and post-secondary achievement of the dual credit (DC) students in the South Island Partnership (SIP). The SIP is a partnership of Camosun College and five school districts located in the South of Vancouver Island, BC. The SIP DC options include Trades programs, Trades exploration courses, and courses in Arts and…

The success of America's economy depends on a dramatic increase in the number and diversity of people who complete college with a high-quality credential. To meet this goal, the Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP) is leading a national effort to increase support for students who left higher education without a degree but are eligible…

Every year a large percentage of the former students who respond to the Diploma, Associate Degree, and Certificate Student Outcomes (DACSO) Survey say they have taken previous post-secondary education, and more than half of those students report that they have completed a previous credential. The purpose of this paper is to look at these former…

Using data from Achieving the Dream: Community Colleges Count, this issue of "Data Notes" looks at students who returned to their original Achieving the Dream institution after completing credentials or transferring to another institution. Forty-two percent of students who either received a degree or certificate or transferred from an Achieving…

An analysis of the 1984, 1987, and 1990 Survey of Income and Program Participation shows that the benefits of sub-baccalaureate credentials (associate degrees and certificates) are generally positive and statistically significant. However, the benefits of completing some postsecondary education but failing to earn credentials are much lower,…

This article discusses factors related to eventual high school credentials among dropouts. Using the National Educational Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS:88/00), the current study found that approximately two-thirds of the sample of high school dropouts eventually attained some form of high school credentials within eight years of their class…

Education should not be thought of as being confined within traditional, formal education, but as embracing all learning processes and activities. Formal and informal systems of learning have specific roles to play within the educational process, while maintaining close cooperative linkages with each other. In other words, education is a lifelong…