A college education is necessary for individuals who are keen on having a long-term financial gain career satisfaction and job stability. The modern global workforce is quite demanding and only individuals with higher educational attainments are considered for top and professional positions. In as much as college education is so crucial, the US continues to witness a significant decline in the number of people who graduate from college. Various factors including gender, racial, and economic disparities, as well as a lack of motivation, contribute to a decline in college education complete rate. An analysis of existing information is crucial in providing an informed view concerning the factors contributing to the decline. The informed could also provide crucial insights regarding how this trend could be reversed to ensure that almost all students that enroll for college complete.
Rubin, P. G., & Hearn, J. C. (2018). The policy filtering process: Understanding distinctive state responses to the national college completion agenda in the United States. Education Policy Analysis Archives , 26(60). http://dx.doi.org/10.14507/epaa.26.3447
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This article provides an insight into the impact of federal and state policies on college education in the US. The duo note with concern that in the last few decades the US post-secondary completion rates he been on the decline because this education is decentralized. This decentralization means that in as much as the state wants to ensure that educational attainment is high, individual states still maintain primary responsibility for policy and governance decisions. The article is crucial in this study as it helps the reader to understand the importance of policy in college completion case. The writers feel that a variation in post-secondary education policies by states is a major factor contributing to low completion rates. In this case, it would be better if every state were committed to ensuring an increase in completion rates to fall within federal requirements.
Terriquez V. (2014). Dreams delayed: Barriers to degree completion among undocumented community college students. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies , 41(8), 1302–1323. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369183X.2014.968534
This article by Terriquez is vital since it focuses on the contribution of immigration policies to college completion rates. Undocumented immigrants just like the legal US citizens need a college education so that they can be in a position to help improve the US economy. In as much as college education is accessible to immigrants, they still have to deal; with other economic challenges, which limits their chances of completing college. Terriquez (2014), indicates that undocumented college students have to contend with tough legal requirements that force them out of college. More so, the students tend to be stressed as their families face financial hardship and the students have to work to support their families. This strain coupled with higher education academic demands finally forces the students out of college. The article establishes that illegality defines the students’ statuses and determines their college pathways, which are not encouraging.
Ragland, S, E. (2016). The effect of state financial aid policies on college completion . [Doctoral thesis]. Walden University, Minneapolis MN, United States.
The dissertation makes for a good contribution to the topic discussion as it objects to the idea that a decline in college completion is due to a lack of financial aid. Ragland’s article focuses on the impact of state financial policies as tools for improving college enrolment but failing in encouraging completion. The reason for such an unfortunate outcome is the fact that the policies are skewed as they continue existing economic disparities. In particular, most states do not give financial aid to those who are in need or that merit the aid but rather give the aid to affluent students. What this means is that the deserving students who rely on financial aid are locked out of college education. Students who manage to enroll in colleges may find it difficult to complete their studies due to limited funds. The research would come in handy for state policymakers who must evaluate their policies to increase college completion rates.
Scire, D. (2019). The effect of state financial aid policies on college completion. Campus Compact. https://www.compactnh.org/wp-content/uploads/large/sites/62/2019/03/CCNH-Research-Brief-2_27_19.pdf
This article provides additional insight into the issue of college completion rates by providing statistical and qualitative evidence. Scire (2019) establishes that only 60% of all first –time and full-time students enrolling in a four-year degree graduate within six years. In as much as this figure seems high one cannot help but wonder why the degree course takes that long. This long duration could be the major factor why the remaining 40% of the students drop out of their degree programs. The article reinforces other author’s views that students from low-income, underrepresented, and first-generation, populations still report low college completion rates. The best thing about this article is the fact that it recognizes the role of communities in sealing this gap. Campus leaders must support community engagement activities to increase institutional retention rates.
Marre, A. (2014). Rural areas lag urban areas in college completion. Amber Waves, 11, 1-11. doi: 10.22004/ag.econ.210014
Marre’s article focuses on geographical disparities that exist in urban and rural areas and how they contribute to a decline in college completion. Rural areas are typical of underdevelopment as most state and federal governments focus more on establishing the urban areas while ignoring the rural areas. Rural areas tend to have limited professional opportunities, which act as demotivation for students in these areas. Marre’s article traces these disparities and concludes that the rural working population with college degrees was 14 % lower as compared to their urban counterparts. The reason for this disparity is the fact that rural areas are not capable of increasing college completion rates due to lower household incomes. Rural students who would wish to attend and complete college are barred from doing so due to economic hardships. If these students get a chance to attend college, it is not automatic that all of them will graduate owing to economic challenges. The article establishes the need for stakeholders to come up with some kind of incentives to encourage rural students not only to enroll but also to complete a college education.
Long, B. T. (2018). The college completion landscape trends, challenges, and why it matters. American Enterprise Institute and Third Way Institute. https://vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/bitstream/handle/10919/95151/TheCollegeCompletionLandscape.ppd?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
Long’s article provides a deeper insight into college completion trends in the US with a focus on two-year and four-year institutions. This comparison is quite helpful as it helps the reader to understand if the duration of the study has anything to do with a decline in college completion. The article establishes that college completion is the common metric that is used to gauge students’ success thus its importance. With a decline in college completion, Long (2018) is discouraged as it translates to a loss of taxpayers and students’ money. The situation is worse for the students who end up receiving lower wages, losing valuable time and worse still burdened by student loans. Long (2018) asserts that taxpayers spend up to $130 billion annually and college dropouts translate to wasted government revenue. The article helps to paint a clear picture of the impacts of declining completion rate not only on the economy but also on students’ professional success.
Shapiro, D., Dundar, A., Huie, F., Wakhungu, P.K., Yuan, X., Nathan, A. & Bhimdiwali, A. (2017). Completing college: A national view of student completion rates – fall 2011 cohort (Signature Report No. 14). National Student Clearinghouse Research Center . https://nscresearchcenter.org/wp-content/uploads/SignatureReport14_Final.pdf
The report contributes to the understanding of the impact of racial disparities and inequality in college completion. The study tracks a cohort of students who started their post-secondary education in the fall of 2011 for six years to determine their completion rate. According to Shapiro et al. (2017), at the end of the six years, only 56.9 percent of the students graduated. The study indicates that there was a 37.5 % decline in the completion rate for two-year college programs. The study indicated disparities in completion rates for whites, Asians, Hispanics, and African Americans. For instance, Whites reported 71.7%, Asians 75.8% black students reported 46% while Hispanics had 55.7% completion rates for four-year programs. This study seems to support a general idea that racial and economic disparities contribute to a decline in the completion rate.
Kantrowitz, M. (2012). The college completion agenda may sacrifice college access for low-income, minority, and other at-risk students. FinAid Page LLC . https://www.finaid.org/educators/20120910completionagenda.pdf
The article creates a scenario that helps readers to draw a clear line between college access and college completion. While there are so many efforts towards ensuring that students have access to college education the same cannot be said about ensuring that students complete their studies. There have been efforts to expand college access but these efforts have amounted to nothing since low-income students still drop out of college. The article does a credible job in linking policy the policy of increasing access and negative outcomes. Colleges tend to bow to the policy pressure requiring them to increase graduation rates causing them to select students with higher GPAs. What this means is that programs that exist to help poor students like Pell Grant programs become more merit-based as opposed to needs-based which hurts low-income students. In a bid to increase completion, this policy reduces access and at the same time leads to a decline in completion rates.
Cohodes, S., & Goodman, J. (2012). First degree earns: The impact of college quality on college completion rates. John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University . https://dash.harvard.edu/handle/1/9396433
The article affirms that the US has continually witnessed a decline in college completion rates, which are lower than they were in the 1970s. The declining rates affect men and individuals from lower socio-economic backgrounds, which is indicative of a widening gender and economic gap in educational attainment. The article establishes that an institution’s quality is a major determinant for establishing college completion rates. The study focuses on the Massachusetts merit aid program where high performing high school students got tuition waivers at in-state public colleges. Despite being high performers the students were placed in lower-quality colleges which translated to declined completion rate. The article establishes that low-quality colleges may translate to lowered tuition fees, and lowers on-time completion rates. In this case, then such a policy contributes to a decline in completion rates even for students who had performed well in high school.
Goldrick-Rab, S., & Kendall, N. (2016). The real price of college- College completion series: Part two. The Century Foundation . https://tcf.org/content/report/the-real-price-of-college/
A college education remains out of reach for students with financial challenges since it is expensive. The article asserts that finances have become a consistent factor contributing to non-completion and the situation has become worse with time. The authors seem to echo many other writers who believe that cost is the major contributor to declining completion rates. While the federal and state governments show commitment to enhancing completion rates, their policies are overstated, as they have not managed to increase completion rates. In the same manner, colleges seem to contribute to low completion rates since they underestimate the costs of living in college. These increased costs are the reason why most students decide to drop out of college, which in turn causes a decline in completion rate.
Roble, J. (2017). Falling further behind: Inequality in college completion. Institute for Research on Poverty, University of Wisconsin . https://www.irp.wisc.edu/publications/factsheets/pdfs/FactSheet13-InequalityCollegeCompletion.pdf
The article reiterates the impact of students’ socio-economic status on college completion rates. While college completion is one of the surest ways of getting out of poverty, it is not automatic since the financial inequality gap is widening. The article does a credible job of providing statistical information to back up the proposition. Roble establishes that 70% of college students drawn from low-socioeconomic status complete college as compared to 83% from high socio-economic status. In the same manner, first-generation students whose parents had no college education report lower completion rates as compared to a student with at least one graduate parent. The statistics indicate that educational attainment correlates with higher socioeconomic status and in turn higher college completion rate.
Bound, J., Lovenheim, M. F., & Turner, S. (2010). Why have college completion rates declined? An analysis of changing student preparation and collegiate resources. American Economic Journal of Applied Economics , 2(3), 129–157. https://doi.org/10.1257/app.2.3.129
The article is focused on establishing why there has been a decline in college completion rates despite a rising enrolment over the years. The writers view the issue from a psychological perspective in that they blame the low rates to students’ perspectives and preparedness. It is as if the students are not sure about what to expect in college, which affects their preparedness. When they get into college, they realize that they are not prepared for the accompanying educational, financial and social expectations. In the same manner, students have to grapple with limited institutional resources which limit student support and course offering. This reality coupled with students' low levels of preparedness forces the unprepared students out of the college.
Santiago, D. A., & Galdeano, E. C. (2015). Helping or hindering? State policies and Latino college completion. Excelencia in Education. https://vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/bitstream/handle/10919/83088/StatePoliciesLatinoCollegeCompletiSt.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
The article makes a significant contribution to the issue of college completion as it specifically focuses on the Latino population, a minority group in the US. The writers appear objective since they agree that the US government has improved its educational policies to accommodate minorities. In the last ten years, Latinos with associate degrees or higher went up from 17 to 22 % which is a positive indicator. The rise in numbers is contributed by college preparation activities where students receive counseling to increase their preparedness. While this has been a positive trend, the writers assert that some policies may hinder Latinos’ access to and completion of a college education. One of these factors is a lack of support for race-conscious efforts, which inhibit inclusivity, and in turn a decline in completion rates.
Fry, R., & Taylor, P. (2013). Hispanic high school graduates pass whites in the rate of college enrollment. Pew Research Center. http://assets.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2013/05/PHC_college_enrollment_2013-05.pdf
The article provides a different perspective on the decline in college completion by tracing it to high school. The writers assert that Hispanics are enrolling in college at a higher rate than their white counterparts are which is considerably encouraging. Despite the high number of college enrollment, Hispanics still lag in completion rate that their white counterparts. Unlike white students, Hispanics are less likely to enroll in four-year colleges, and less likely to attend a selective college. In the same manner, Hispanics are less likely to be enrolled in full-time college programs and less likely to complete a bachelor’s degree. What this means is that Hispanics' completion rate is still on the decline if only 11% of Hispanics complete a four-year college degree.
Houle, J., & Warner, C. (2017). Into the red and back to the nest? Student debt, college completion, and returning to the parental home among young adults. Sociology of Education, 90(1), 89-108. doi: 10.1177/0038040716685873
This article takes a different approach to the issue of college completion as a factor that causes students to go back to their parental homes instead of the job market. For a long time, struggle to pay student debt was the main factor that students could not stand on their own but relied on parental support to meet daily needs. However, failure to complete college education has taken a center stage as the main factor behind the scenario. According to Houle & Warner (2017), the students who are struggling to pay their student loans are not stressed because the balances are too high but because they failed to complete college. Moreover, the students may have attended for-profit or two-year colleges reporting low completion rates and limited labor market benefits. In this case, then a decline in college completion translates to an increased financial burden to the student but also their parents and the federal government.
References
Bound, J., Lovenheim, M. F., & Turner, S. (2010). Why have college completion rates declined? An analysis of changing student preparation and collegiate resources. American Economic Journal of Applied Economics , 2(3), 129–157. https://doi.org/10.1257/app.2.3.129
Cohodes, S., & Goodman, J. (2012). First degree earns: The impact of college quality on college completion rates. John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University . https://dash.harvard.edu/handle/1/9396433
Fry, R., & Taylor, P. (2013). Hispanic high school graduates pass whites in the rate of college enrollment. Pew Research Center. http://assets.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2013/05/PHC_college_enrollment_2013-05.pdf
Goldrick-Rab, S., & Kendall, N. (2016). The real price of college- College completion series: Part two. The Century Foundation . https://tcf.org/content/report/the-real-price-of-college/
Houle, J., & Warner, C. (2017). Into the red and back to the nest? Student debt, college completion, and returning to the parental home among young adults. Sociology of Education, 90(1), 89-108. doi: 10.1177/0038040716685873
Kantrowitz, M. (2012). The college completion agenda may sacrifice college access for low-income, minority, and other at-risk students. FinAid Page LLC . https://www.finaid.org/educators/20120910completionagenda.pdf
Long, B. T. (2018). The college completion landscape trends, challenges, and why it matters. American Enterprise Institute and Third Way Institute. https://vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/bitstream/handle/10919/95151/TheCollegeCompletionLandscape.ppd?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
Marre, A. (2014). Rural areas lag urban areas in college completion. Amber Waves, 11, 1-11. doi: 10.22004/ag.econ.210014
Ragland, S, E. (2016). The effect of state financial aid policies on college completion . [Doctoral thesis]. Walden University, Minneapolis MN, United States.
Roble, J. (2017). Falling further behind: Inequality in college completion. Institute for Research on Poverty, University of Wisconsin . https://www.irp.wisc.edu/publications/factsheets/pdfs/FactSheet13-InequalityCollegeCompletion.pdf
Rubin, P. G., & Hearn, J. C. (2018). The policy filtering process: Understanding distinctive state responses to the national college completion agenda in the United States. Education Policy Analysis Archives , 26(60). http://dx.doi.org/10.14507/epaa.26.3447
Santiago, D. A., & Galdeano, E. C. (2015). Helping or hindering? State policies and Latino college completion. Excelencia in Education. https://vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/bitstream/handle/10919/83088/StatePoliciesLatinoCollegeCompletiSt.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
Scire, D. (2019). The effect of state financial aid policies on college completion. Campus Compact. https://www.compactnh.org/wp-content/uploads/large/sites/62/2019/03/CCNH-Research-Brief-2_27_19.pdf
Shapiro, D., Dundar, A., Huie, F., Wakhungu, P.K., Yuan, X., Nathan, A. & Bhimdiwali, A. (2017). Completing college: A national view of student completion rates – fall 2011 cohort (Signature Report No. 14). National Student Clearinghouse Research Center . https://nscresearchcenter.org/wp-content/uploads/SignatureReport14_Final.pdf
Terriquez V. (2014). Dreams delayed: Barriers to degree completion among undocumented community college students. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies , 41(8), 1302–1323. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369183X.2014.968534
