ERIC Number: ED670819
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2019-Apr
Pages: 57
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: 0000-00-00
Can Light-Touch College-Going Interventions Make a Difference? Evidence from a Statewide Experiment in Michigan. EdWorkingPaper No. 19-36
Joshua Hyman
Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University
I conduct a statewide experiment in Michigan with nearly 50,000 high-achieving high school seniors. Treated students are mailed a letter encouraging them to consider college and providing them with the web address of a college information website. I find that very high-achieving, low-income students, and very high-achieving, minority students are the most likely to navigate to the website. Small changes to letter content affect take-up. For example, highlighting college affordability induces 18 percent more students to the website than highlighting college choice, and 37 percent more than highlighting how to apply to college. I find a statistically precise zero impact on college enrollment among all students mailed the letter. However, low-income students experience a small increase in the probability that they enroll in college, driven by increases at four-year institutions. An examination of persistence through college, while imprecise, suggests that the students induced into college by the intervention persist at a lower rate than the inframarginal student.
Descriptors: High School Seniors, College Bound Students, Information Seeking, Information Dissemination, Low Income Students, College Enrollment, Intervention, Academic Persistence, Minority Group Students, Student Recruitment
Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University. Brown University Box 1985, Providence, RI 02912. Tel: 401-863-7990; Fax: 401-863-1290; e-mail: annenberg@brown.edu; Web site: https://annenberg.brown.edu/
Related Records: EJ1238270
Publication Type: Reports - Research
Education Level: High Schools; Secondary Education; Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: Spencer Foundation; Institute of Education Sciences (ED)
Authoring Institution: Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University
Identifiers - Location: Michigan
Identifiers - Assessments and Surveys: ACT Assessment
IES Funded: Yes
Grant or Contract Numbers: R305E100008
Department of Education Funded: Yes
Author Affiliations: N/A