For 21st century workers, success is rapidly being redefined. A high school education is no longer sufficient for high-wage employment, and the path to a postsecondary credential of value can be a convoluted one. Each transition -- from secondary to postsecondary education, from postsecondary education to the workforce, or from adult basic…

Growing up in Westminster in northern Maryland, Ron Shriver, 29, used to pass by the stately brick buildings of the college that is now McDaniel College and wonder: What went on up there on that hill overlooking Main Street? What would it be like to go to a college like that? What would it be like to go to college at all? Nobody in Mr. Shriver's…

Associate (community college) degrees have expanded rapidly in the past decade in Hong Kong, but their value has been questioned due to the limited number of government-funded articulation opportunities available. This paper argues that associate degrees in Hong Kong are not valued solely for articulation purposes, but also for nurturing students'…

In this brief, we summarize our research on the wage returns to community college pathways in North Carolina. We use detailed individual and college transcript information on approximately 830,000 students who attended community college during the 2000s. This transcript data is matched with earnings data from Unemployment Insurance records. We…

The BC Student Outcomes Survey Project collects information from approximately 30,000 former post-secondary students annually. In 2012, four surveys were conducted with students who completed the following studies: (1) diploma, associate degree, and certificate programs; (2) baccalaureate programs; (3) apprenticeship technical training; and (4)…

Despite widely shared aspirations, the vast majority of community college students do not continue their studies at four-year colleges. In November 2013, "Jobs for the Future" convened higher education leaders and researchers to explore state-level policy strategies for restructuring community college in ways that enhance student…

This report presents academic year 2011 through 2014 degrees awarded and top-ten degrees at Mississippi institutes of higher education, along with April 2014 academic program inventory for Mississippi. The following institutes of higher education are presented: (1) IHL System; (2) Alcorn State University; (3) Delta State University; (4) Jackson…

Understanding the ways that international students seek information and help in the host country is essential for improving academic, social, cultural, and welfare support for this student cohort. However, there is a dearth of literature that documents how international students in the vocational education and training (VET) sector do so. This…

In spite of open access to community college education, specifically human service associate degree programs, students with criminal justice histories do not necessarily have an unobstructed pathway to obtaining the degree and admission to the baccalaureate programs in human services and social work that are almost always selective. The first…

The quality issue emerged as a topic of concern for the goods and product market has also become a key element in services like higher education. With the rise of the mobility of students, academicians and graduates, the quality and the compatibility of education systems have recently been subject to much debate. Moreover, the huge role of higher…

The role of the registered nurse has evolved over the years as technology has changed and the practice of nursing has advanced. There are many factors that influence how a new nurse enters practice; however, confidence appears to play a large role in the way nursing students see themselves and how this self perception regulates transition to…

President Obama's 2009 graduation initiative has emphasized the shift in the national academic focus from access to higher education to graduation, making degree attainment one of the most important factors of measurement and accountability for institutions of higher education. Students of color, in particular, Hispanic males, have not fared well…

A primary goal of the U.S. Department of Education's Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) Blueprint for Reform is to improve the college readiness of high school graduates (U.S. Department of Education 2010). College readiness is a complex benchmark and has been measured in several ways, including transcript analysis (Adelman 2006) and…

While promoting postsecondary credential completion is a national priority intended to help graduates secure good jobs, the value of credentials in the labor market from the perspective of employers is not well understood. Specifically, more attention is needed to understand how credentials align with employer needs. Through in-depth interviews…

A number of economists, policymakers, elected officials, and employers cite a "skills gap" as the reason the nation is not putting more people back to work. The problem, they reason, is that too many people have the wrong skills for today's jobs, and colleges and universities are not doing enough to prepare people with the right skills.…