A Descriptive Look at College Enrollment and Degree Completion of Baltimore City Graduates
Author: Durham, Rachel E.
Date: 2011-08-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: College Graduates,Enrollment,Educational Attainment,Employment Patterns,High School Graduates,Graduation Rate,Salary Wage Differentials,Citizen Participation,College Readiness,Access to Education,Remedial Instruction,Family Income,Low Income Groups,Comparative Analysis,Colleges,Higher Education

Earning a college degree increases a person's life outcomes in income, employment, health, and quality of life. The average person with a bachelor's degree earns almost twice as much as a high school graduate and nearly triple that of someone who did not finish high school. The unemployment rate for people with bachelor's degrees is about one-third that for non-high school graduates and one-half that of high school graduates (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2010). College graduates are also more likely to have health insurance and are more likely to participate in civic life--for example, they are more likely to vote or participate in community organizations (College Board, 2010). In short, college graduates are wealthier, healthier, and more civically active. College pays dividends to both the individual and the society. The goal of this study is to paint a picture of Baltimore City Schools' current activities on college access, enrollment, and completion. The authors hope to establish a baseline for future analyses and identify areas where additional research and information could inform City Schools concerning its graduates' success with college access. Core findings include: (1) Local colleges and universities have disparate definitions of college readiness. Local institutions vary so greatly that students who are labeled college ready at one local college often will not be at another. This differential need for remediation has far-reaching implications for students in terms of the cost of college and time to graduation; (2) There has been increased enrollment at 2-year colleges compared to 4-year even though it is clear that students who enroll in 2-year colleges are far less likely to complete degrees; (3) Recent national statistics indicate that about 70% of high school graduates enroll in college right after graduation, and for students from low-income families enroll at the lower rate of 54% (National Center for Education Statistics, 2011). About 48% of Baltimore's graduates enrolled in college immediately after graduation; (4) Over time, the number of Baltimore graduates who enroll in college rises: among the Class of 2008, 60.8% had enrolled by 2010; and (5) For the Class of 2004 who &quot;ever enrolled&quot; in college, 23% earned either a 2- or 4-year degree by 2010. Appended are: (1) Comparison of Educational Attainment for People Aged 25 Years and Older in the US, Maryland, Baltimore County, and Baltimore City; (2) Data Sources and Collection Methods; (3) Data Processing and Methods of Analysis; (4) Graduation (Leaver Rate) and Fall College Enrollment for the Baltimore City Schools Graduating Classes of 2006 through 2010; (5) Baltimore City Schools Classification By Year; and (6) Most Frequently Enrolled Institutions of Higher Education Attended by City Schools Students from the Class of 2004. (Contains 9 figures, 10 tables, and 1 footnote.) [For related report, &quot;A Descriptive Look at College Enrollment and Degree Completion of Baltimore City Graduates. Policy Brief,&quot; see ED535769.]