Higher education enrolment has long been known to rise and fall counter to the current economic situation. This counter-cyclical enrolment response represents an economic principle where a price-elastic consumer is more likely make a consumption choice when another valuable use of resources is not available. Higher unemployment has historically…

Pricing online courses is an important issue for managing online education. This research note reports a statistical analysis of price differences between online courses and on-campus courses at 103 US educational institutions based on the data available on the Internet. The finding indicates that educational institutions set significantly lower…

This paper assesses the extent to which Rhode Island's workforce lacks skills that are in demand among the state's current and potential employers and, if so, whether such a skills gap or labor market "mismatch" significantly restrains employment growth in the state. Using an index developed by Sahin et al. (2014), we find that…

This Statistics in Brief examines three cohorts of recent college graduates 1 year after they attained their bachelor's degree. The graduation years for the three cohorts span a 15-year period: 1992-93, 1999-2000, and 2007-08. The latest cohort (2007-08) graduated in the midst of the 2008 recession. This Statistics in Brief first examines how…

This report is divided into four sections. Section 1 is a short discussion of the economic theory underlying the construction of the cost of education index and an example of how the index is calculated. Also presented are descriptions of the factors included in the statistical analysis to control for quality, quantity, and cost differences and…

The proposed New York State Cost of Education Index would be a statistical measure of the price changes in the goods and services purchased by local districts. Data would be available on a regional basis. Many statistical procedures and theoretical considerations involved in constructing such an index are similar to those used for the Consumer…

A study examined the economic relationship between growth in dentistry and supply/demand factors. Output, or real per capita dental expenditures, is seen as a function of consumer income, dental insurance, and dentist supply. Analysis indicates a significant relationship between dental sector growth and economic market factors, including growth in…

This report on faculty salaries in Washington public higher education is divided into two parts: a status report and a commentary dealing with the questions emanating from an analysis of faculty salaries and fringe benefits. The status report provides background information on faculty salary recommendations made by the Council for Postsecondary…

Salaries and employer-paid insurance benefits for faculty members at public community colleges in Washington were compared with those of other states to provide a basis for a salary increase recommendation to the Governor and the Legislature. Salary level assessment involved comparing average salary increases to the cost of living advance as…

The three papers in this volume describe exploratory efforts to adjust state aid to local school districts so as to reflect differences in local costs unrelated to school program content. Each study is limited to an analysis of relevant data for one of the three states considered--Michigan, California, and Florida. The underlying assumption is…

In 1980, full-time state resident undergraduate students attending AASCU-member institutions paid an average of $712 for tuition and fees, and $1,605 for room and board charges. These figures reflect a 10.6 percent average increase over 1979 costs. Including books and supplies, transportation, and personal expenses, the cost of college attendance…

Because U.S. government expenditures for research and development (R & D) comprise more than half of the total national support in these areas, the government plays the major role in determining the nature and objectives of R & D efforts. This report examines the federal response to national needs in terms of R & D support and changing R & D…