Increasingly, a bachelor’s degree is required for career advancement and economic security. On average, individuals with a bachelor’s degree earn higher wages and have greater job stability than those with less education. Community colleges, which enroll over 40 percent of undergraduates, often serve as the starting point for students seeking a bachelor’s degree, particularly for students of color, low-income students, and adult learners. Yet, for many of these students, four-year institutions are inaccessible for a variety of reasons, including cost, geographic distance, and work or caregiving responsibilities. As a result, while 80 percent of community college students have expressed that they want to earn a bachelor’s degree, only 16 percent do so within six years.

In response, states have increasingly authorized community colleges to offer bachelor’s degrees. As of February 2026, 24 states have allowed this practice, with 212 community colleges across these states now offering 770 community college bachelor’s programs. These programs aim to create more efficient pathways to four-year credentials, thereby reducing the cost of college, while also expanding access, especially in rural areas with few or no four-year institutions. They are also intended to help states meet local labor market needs by developing programs in high-demand fields.

There is emerging evidence that community college bachelor’s programs are beginning to meet these goals. Recent research links these programs to increases in overall enrollment, including expanded access for Black, Latino, and older students, as well as higher earnings relative to associate degree graduates. However, students who earn a bachelor’s degree through a community college typically face an earnings penalty compared with those who earn their degree from a four-year institution, though this gap is largest in computer and engineering fields and smaller—or absent—in healthcare, business, and criminal justice. These findings are complemented by qualitative research highlighting positive perceptions and experiences among current community college bachelor’s students and graduates. Most studies to date, however, rely on institution- or program-level data, which can obscure meaningful variation in experiences and outcomes at the student level. These studies use descriptive methods, which are useful but limited in establishing the root cause of these changes.

With generous support from ECMC Foundation, Ithaka S+R is excited to announce a new two-year project designed to build the evidence base on community college bachelor’s programs and degrees through a series of research studies, culminating in several publications on our website. We will:

  • Develop a policy and research framework that contextualizes these programs within states’ broader efforts to improve affordability, reduce time to degree, and strengthen the alignment between higher education and workforce needs.
  • Conduct national descriptive analyses using IPEDS and College Scorecard data to understand institution-level enrollment and completion changes before and after the implementation of community college bachelor’s programs.
  • Partner with a state longitudinal data system to estimate causal impacts of these programs and degrees on enrollment, completion, and earnings using quasi-experimental methods, complemented by stakeholder interviews.
  • Use the empirical estimates of enrollment, completion, and labor market effects to create a customizable tool that estimates the individual, institutional, and state economic returns of community college bachelor’s programs, accounting for both the benefits and costs of pursuing or offering such a credential.

Findings from this study will help states, institutions, and students better understand the benefits and costs of community college bachelor’s programs and make more informed policy and investment decisions about their development, implementation, and expansion. These insights are especially important as states intensify efforts to increase college affordability and align higher education outputs and workforce needs, including the production of credentials of value. At Ithaka S+R, this work sits alongside other research on institution-, state-, and system-level innovations and policies designed to advance the economic, social, and civic value of postsecondary education as part of our Postsecondary Value & Public Trust program.

If you’re interested in learning more or staying up to date on this project’s findings and publications, please reach out to Daniel Rossman (Daniel.Rossman@ithaka.org) and Alex Monday (Alex.Monday@ithaka.org).