The following paper estimates the impact of initially declaring and then departing from a STEM major on college dropout and degree completion rates for students in the Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study. The results show that students who initially declared a STEM major and switched to a "non-STEM" area of study were…

Evidence of inefficient course-taking patterns at community colleges has spurred policy conversations about how to ensure effective course sequences. Structural reforms, like guided pathways, seek to reduce major switching as a means to streamline student course taking and eliminate unnecessary credits. By placing students into broad fields of…

To compete in the global marketplace, the U.S. economy heavily relies on higher education institutions to educate the college graduates and knowledge workers needed to create the innovative products and services of tomorrow. And yet, where once America led the world in educational attainment, recent data from the Organization for Economic…

This report examines the participation of older undergraduates, above age 24, in postsecondary education using data from the 1989-90 National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS:90) and the 1990-92 Beginning Postsecondary Student Longitudinal Study (BPS:90/92). It profiles older undergraduates and compares them with younger undergraduates with…