Publications

First-generation college students—those whose parents did not earn bachelor’s degrees—demonstrate remarkable resilience in pursuing higher education, yet they face greater obstacles to degree completion than their continuing-generation peers. These challenges include fewer financial resources to pay for education and living expenses, lower levels of academic preparation, and limited guidance to help them navigate the complex environment of higher education.[1] As a result, first-generation students are less likely than their continuing-generation peers to persist from year to year, graduate within six…

By 2020, one in four undergraduates were enrolled in exclusively online programs, double the number enrolled in 2012. The policy landscape concerning online education changed markedly with the establishment of the State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement (SARA) in 2014. This regulatory change made it easier for institutions to offer online programs to students who reside out of state while completing the program. Using nationally representative survey data from the National Postsecondary Student Aid Study, this report documents who is enrolling in…