This report describes patterns of continuity and change over time in four areas of the transition to adulthood among young adults as measured 2 years after their senior year of high school. The four areas are postsecondary enrollment, labor force roles, family formation, and civic engagement through voting or military service. The analysis…

The National Longitudinal Survey of the high school class of 1972 was used to assess academic ability of elementary and secondary school teachers. Results are discussed. (Author/DF)

Using a structural equation model of educational attainment, a study extends and supports previous investigations of educational discontinuities among American White and Black males and females by using data from a national longitudinal study. (MSE)

A causal framework was used to explore factors that influence the enrollment of four-year college students in the hard and technical sciences (math, science, engineering) and the professions (pre-law, medicine, dentistry). The factors studied were family status, standardized test performance, high school rank, educational expectations, high school…

Using two complimentary data sets, the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972 and the Study of Academic Prediction and Growth, the conventional interpretation of educational plans as motives and thus determinants of educational attainment is questioned. It was found that when questioned about their educational loans: (1) as…

The postsecondary educational plans of black and white high school seniors in the class of 1972 were compared with those in the same racial classification in the class of 1980. Four planning categories were examined: vocational school, community college-vocational, community college-academic, and 4-year college or university. Data were extracted…

The study was undertaken to use data from the National Longitudinal study, in combination with other data resources, to improve the understanding of the effects of student financial aid in institutional and family decisionmaking. Three principle questions are addressed: (1) Do low income and minority students receive larger aid packages, and in…

Results of a study of trends in college-going decisions of new high school graduates between 1972 and 1980 are presented, along with a model of college choice. The focus is the choice between college and noncollege options. Based on a review of empirical and theoretical work on college choice over the past 25 years, information is provided on key…

Changes in the self-concept and career orientation of 10,759 members of a nationally representative sample of high school graduates was studied over 7 years. Objectives were to determine: (1) the degree to which changes in adolescents' self-concept and career attitudes were related to their level of involvement in postsecondary education; and (2)…

The postsecondary educational plans of black and white high school seniors in the class of 1972 were compared with those in the same racial classification in the class of 1980. Data were extracted from the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972 and from the survey entitled, "High School and Beyond." In order to test…

This paper studies two kinds of selection practices in schools, curriculum tracking and class ranking. Using multiple regression analyses of the National Longitudinal Survey (NLS), this paper finds that tracking and class ranks have important effects on whether students can attend college. However, it also finds that many students misperceive…

Data from the National Longitudinal Study of 1972 (designed to provide statistics on a national sample of young adults as they moved out of high school into their early adulthood) were utilized to examine the determinants of college attendance with controlling variables, such as family background and students' ability. The sample from base year…

Factors affecting access to postsecondary education for college-age youth were studied, with emphasis on personal characteristics and institutional policies that influence educational aspirations and postsecondary enrollments. Data were primarily derived from two databases: the High School and Beyond Study and the National Longitudinal Study of…

A summary is presented of some of the results from the National Longitudinal Study of the High School of 1972, which examined the vocational activities, plans, aspirations, and attitudes of young adults after they leave high school, along with their postsecondary experiences and family and community activities. By October 1979, about one-fourth of…

Data from Project Talent and the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972 provided comparable data on changes between 1960 to 1972 in reading ability and other characteristics of high school seniors, college entrants, and Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) takers. Each group showed a decline in reading ability, but the drop for SAT…