This paper studies the causal impacts of public universities on the outcomes of their marginally admitted students. I use administrative admission records spanning all 35 public universities in Texas, which collectively enroll 10 percent of American public university students, to systematically identify and employ decentralized cutoffs in SAT/ACT…

Using administrative data from Georgia, we provide the first study of the full set of college entrance exam-taking strategies, including who takes the ACT and the SAT (or both), when they take the exams, and how many times they take each exam. We have several main findings. First, one-third of exam takers take both the ACT and SAT. Second, we see…

The children of migrant workers are one of the most marginalized populations in the United States. Instability and poverty impact many aspects of most migrant students' lives, especially education. Migrant or seasonal workers travel between cities, states, and countries following employment in temporary and cyclical industries such as agriculture,…

Students are typically given a large amount of freedom to choose the level of "curricular dispersion": the tight focus or lack thereof in the courses they elect to take while in college. There is little evidence about what predicts students' curricular dispersion, whether it affects later college or labor force outcomes, or, in fact, how…

America's education system, from kindergarten through the state university, is designed to produce college graduates. Those who stop short of at least a community-college diploma are widely regarded as failures, or at least victims of a failed system. Yet most Americans fall into this category, and current trends offer little hope for improvement.…

Access to detailed and comprehensive administrative data has opened up the possibility to pursue continuous, systematic, and more refined assessments of the effects of applied learning. However, most studies using such data have not examined the effects of applied learning on retention, graduation, and labor market outcomes. To better judge the…

This is a new report that combines the previous Annual Accountability Report and University Work Plans into a single document more closely aligned with the Board of Governors' 2025 System Strategic Plan. This revised document will enhance the System's commitment to accountability and strategic planning by enabling comparisons between past goals…

This report analyzed five databases to get a full picture of the different aspects and traits of Latinos in the workforce: (1) the Current Population Survey (CPS); (2) The American Community Survey (ACS); (3) the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS); (4) the Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study (BPS); and (5) the…

This executive summary highlights findings presented in the full report, "Latino Education and Economic Progress: Running Faster but Still Behind." The report reveals that Latinos have a long way to go in achieving educational and economic equality. Latinos' rates of high school graduation are improving, but they are still last compared…

Recent studies have found a large earnings premium to attending a more selective college, but the mechanisms underlying this premium have received little attention and remain unclear. In order to shed light on this question, I develop a multidimensional signaling model relying on college grades and selectivity that rationalizes students' choices…

The 2019 edition of the "Digest of Education Statistics" is the 55th in a series of publications initiated in 1962. The purpose of the "Digest" is to provide a compilation of statistical information covering the broad field of American education from prekindergarten through graduate school. It contains data on a variety of…

The 2017 edition of the "Digest of Education Statistics" is the 53rd in a series of publications initiated in 1962. The "Digest" has been issued annually except for combined editions for the years 1977-78, 1983-84, and 1985-86. Its primary purpose is to provide a compilation of statistical information covering the broad field…

The 54th in a series of publications initiated in 1962, the purpose of the "Digest" is to provide a compilation of statistical information covering the broad field of education from prekindergarten through graduate school. It contains data on a variety of topics, including the number of schools and colleges, teachers, enrollments, and…

The 2016 edition of the "Digest of Education Statistics" is the 52nd in a series of publications initiated in 1962. The "Digest" has been issued annually except for combined editions for the years 1977-78, 1983-84, and 1985-86. Its primary purpose is to provide a compilation of statistical information covering the broad field…

For 15 years, "Newark Kids Count" has provided insight into the challenges facing Newark's children and families. This report presents the portrait of Newark children in 2010. A special section on Newark charter schools is also presented. Advocates for Children of New Jersey's (ACNJ's) goal in choosing this topic was to inform the…