Net effects of institutional type on baccalaureate degree attainment of "traditional" students.This study explores the net effects of institutional type on degree attainment. The literature suggests that two-year college matriculants are much less likely to earn a baccalaureate degree than students first enrolling at four-year colleges. Such findings hold even when researchers control for differences among the two groups. Previous studies did not, however, examine whether age and full-time enrollment are factors in persistence (1) In a CRT, the time a phosphor dot remains illuminated after being energized. Long-persistence phosphors reduce flicker, but generate ghost-like images that linger on screen for a fraction of a second. . This study seeks to determine if the established pattern is valid when examining only "traditional" students. Introduction The objective of this study is to determine if institutional type has a net effect on baccalaureate degree attainment of traditional-aged students. This study defines traditional students as those under the age of 19 at high school graduation Graduation is the action of receiving or conferring an academic degree or the associated ceremony. The date of event is often called degree day. The event itself is also called commencement, convocation or invocation. who enroll directly, on a full-time basis, into college the following fall term. The significance of this study is to explore the equity of opportunity for baccalaureate attainment for traditional students by institutional type. The null hypothesis null hypothesis, n theoretical assumption that a given therapy will have results not statistically different from another treatment. null hypothesis, n claims that no statistically significant difference exists regarding traditional students' baccalaureate degree completion based upon institutional type (two-year or four-year institutions) at initial matriculation ma·tric·u·late tr. & intr.v. ma·tric·u·lat·ed, ma·tric·u·lat·ing, ma·tric·u·lates To admit or be admitted into a group, especially a college or university. n. . Research that relies on data from National Center for Education Statistics The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), as part of the U.S. Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences (IES), collects, analyzes, and publishes statistics on education and public school district finance information in the United States; conducts studies 1972 National Longitudinal study longitudinal study a chronological study in epidemiology which attempts to establish a relationship between an antecedent cause and a subsequent effect. See also cohort study. indicates that the net effect of enrolling at a two-year college instead of a four-year college reduces a student's probability of obtaining a baccalaureate degree. Estimates of the forgone probability range from 11% to 19% (Nunley and Breneman, 1988; Anderson, 1984; Velez, 1985). After reviewing the research regarding the net effects of educational achievement by type of institution, Dougherty (1992) argues that findings hold even when researchers rely on different sources of national data. He concludes: In sum, the poorer outcomes encountered by baccalaureate aspirants entering community colleges rather than four-year colleges cannot be attributed only to the fact that the former entrants are generally of more modest backgrounds, abilities, and aspirations. Even when we compare students with similar traits, we find that baccalaureate aspirants entering the community college are still significantly less likely to realize their hopes. This is an institutional effect that cannot be explained by differences in student characteristics. (p. 191-192) In contrast to existing studies, the present study restrictively selects observations by including only traditional students and eliminating "experimenters" from the analysis. Grubb (1991) defines experimenters as students who earn fewer than 12 equivalent semester hours Noun 1. semester hour - a unit of academic credit; one hour a week for an academic semester credit hour course credit, credit - recognition by a college or university that a course of studies has been successfully completed; typically measured in semester hours of college credit throughout their college careers; this study excludes such students from the analysis and extends the exclusion to all students enrolled part-time at both two-year and four-year institutions. While most existing studies include only baccalaureate degree aspirants or those enrolled in academic programs, they fail to control for age, as well as remove experimenters and part-time students from the analysis. This study uses a narrow selection of students in order to provide a valid comparison of a group of students loosely defined as traditional. This study finds that initial matriculation at a two-year college reduces traditional students' net probability of earning a baccalaureate degree, although the effect is much less than what the current literature suggests. Furthermore, while this study concludes that institutional type is important in explaining baccalaureate degree attainment, its importance is secondary to several other independent variables included in the model. Literature Much of the existing literature on community colleges addresses those institutions' role in baccalaureate attainment, examining the degree to which community colleges facilitate or hinder hin·der 1 v. hin·dered, hin·der·ing, hin·ders v.tr. 1. To be or get in the way of. 2. To obstruct or delay the progress of. v.intr. students in their aspirations aspirations npl → aspiraciones fpl (= ambition); ambición f aspirations npl (= hopes, ambition) → aspirations fpl to earn a bachelor's degree. Brint and Karabel (1989) claim that educational leaders of well-known universities helped to create public junior colleges with the purpose of diverting di·vert v. di·vert·ed, di·vert·ing, di·verts v.tr. 1. To turn aside from a course or direction: Traffic was diverted around the scene of the accident. 2. students away from their elite institutions, thereby creating the historical conditions for an institutional effect hindering hin·der 1 v. hin·dered, hin·der·ing, hin·ders v.tr. 1. To be or get in the way of. 2. To obstruct or delay the progress of. v.intr. baccalaureate attainment. Brint and Karabel argue that junior colleges (and eventually community colleges) fail to provide the same degree of upward mobility upward mobility n. The state of being upwardly mobile. upward mobility Noun movement from a lower to a higher economic and social status for their students as do four-year institutions. Although four-year institutions did not divest To deprive or take away. Divest is usually used in reference to the relinquishment of authority, power, property, or title. If, for example, an individual is disinherited, he or she is divested of the right to inherit money. the first two years of instruction, they did, however, become more exclusive. As the number of two-year colleges grew, admission requirements at four-year institutions became more stringent (Zwerling, 1976; Levine, 1986), increasing the enrollments of less-qualified students at two-year institutions. Furthermore, community colleges' post-World War II emphasis on vocational training, with strong support from the federal government and many foundations, further diverted di·vert v. di·vert·ed, di·vert·ing, di·verts v.tr. 1. To turn aside from a course or direction: Traffic was diverted around the scene of the accident. 2. students from attaining the baccalaureate degree (Brint & Karabel, 1989). Although impressive, Brint and Karabel's (1989) argument is not definitive. It stresses their theme of anticipatory subordination rather than an historical interpretation of the events in the development of the public junior college (Hutcheson, 1999). Brint and Karabel define anticipatory subordination as the condition that the junior college is structurally subordinate to industry and the university and therefore serves the anticipated needs of industry and the university through primarily terminal education. Brint and Karabel's reliance on only two states, as well as their reliance on the opinions of relatively few educational leaders, casts doubts on their conclusions. They provide a comprehensive review of foundation activities, government task force reports, and the American Association American Association refers to one of the following professional baseball leagues:
AAJC Asian American Justice Center (formerly National Asian Pacific American Legal Consortium) ) policy but acknowledge that from the mid-1940s to the late 1960s the proportion of two-year college students in vocational program Noun 1. vocational program - a program of vocational education educational program - a program for providing education was never greater than one third of all two-year college students. Thus Brint and Karabel presume pre·sume v. pre·sumed, pre·sum·ing, pre·sumes v.tr. 1. To take for granted as being true in the absence of proof to the contrary: We presumed she was innocent. that two-year colleges fail to act with much, if any, independence from industry and four-year institutions and serve to hinder students' baccalaureate attainment historically and in the present. In contrast, Frye (1993) concludes in his historical investigation of public junior colleges that students actively resisted terminal education, as did public junior college presidents, faculty members, and staff members. While Brint and Karabel (1989) focus on the institutional constraints CONSTRAINTS - A language for solving constraints using value inference. ["CONSTRAINTS: A Language for Expressing Almost-Hierarchical Descriptions", G.J. Sussman et al, Artif Intell 14(1):1-39 (Aug 1980)]. on baccalaureate attainment, Cohen cohen or kohen (Hebrew: “priest”) Jewish priest descended from Zadok (a descendant of Aaron), priest at the First Temple of Jerusalem. The biblical priesthood was hereditary and male. and Brawer (1996) argue that individual access and upward mobility are the key issues in equity of opportunity for the baccalaureate. Cohen and Brawer argue that student retention and subsequent student success is largely beyond the control of community colleges and that arguments about educational equality should focus on opportunity for individual mobility. The two-year college, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. Cohen and Brawer, enhances educational opportunity by providing many students with educational opportunities that may not otherwise exist. Their argument establishes a substantially different framework for understanding two-year college student baccalaureate attainment than that of Brint and Karabel. Yet recent studies addressing baccalaureate attainment among students at two-year and four-year institutions have consistently found a substantial difference between the two groups of students. Anderson (1984) evaluated educational attainment Educational attainment is a term commonly used by statisticans to refer to the highest degree of education an individual has completed.[1] The US Census Bureau Glossary defines educational attainment as "the highest level of education completed in terms of the of students at two-year and four-year institutions who matriculated within two years of high school graduation and found a 14% net difference in baccalaureate degree attainment in favor of upon the side of; favorable to; for the advantage of. See also: favor four-year matriculants over their two-year counterparts. Nunley and Breneman (1988) examined the educational record of baccalaureate aspirants and reported an 11% net reduction in the likelihood of attaining a bachelor degree for two-year college matriculants as compared to four-year college matriculants, while Whitaker and Pascarella (1994) examined those students who matriculated within one year of high school graduation and found that initial matriculation at a two-year college had significant negative effects on the level of education attained. In his study of only those students who enrolled in academic programs, Velez (1985) found that matriculants at four-year institutions had a statistically significant 18.7% advantage, net of several relevant variables, of earning a baccalaureate degree than did their two-year counterparts. While these studies suggest support for Brint and Karabel's (1989) conclusions about the institutional effect of two-year colleges, we argue that there remain some important but not sufficiently examined variables in the study of baccalaureate attainment. One reason for the difference in baccalaureate attainment between students at two-year and four-year institutions may be the enrollment of students experimenting with higher education higher education Study beyond the level of secondary education. Institutions of higher education include not only colleges and universities but also professional schools in such fields as law, theology, medicine, business, music, and art. . It appears that the experimenters disproportionately dis·pro·por·tion·ate adj. Out of proportion, as in size, shape, or amount. dis  pro·por attend two-year colleges. Grubb (1991)
documented an increase in the proportion of such experimenters at
two-year colleges, from 10.5% in 1972 to 18.3% in 1980, and Cohen and
Brawer (1996) report that only one half of community college
matriculants persist long enough to earn credit for a single term.
Similarly, Tinto Tin´ton. 1. A red Madeira wine, wanting the high aroma of the white sorts, and, when old, resembling tawny port. (1993) argues that system departure within the first year of college is 31% for two-year college entrants and 17% for their four-year counterparts. Brint and Karabel (1989) capture the general nature of the problem of the community college in relationship to the four-year college, as the two-year college does not offer the same level of baccalaureate attainment for students as the four-year colleges. Yet their analysis does not appear to sustain institutional events such as student resistance and historical context. Conversely con·verse 1 intr.v. con·versed, con·vers·ing, con·vers·es 1. To engage in a spoken exchange of thoughts, ideas, or feelings; talk. See Synonyms at speak. 2. , Cohen and Brawer (1996) allow anecdotal anecdotal /an·ec·do·tal/ (an?ek-do´t'l) based on case histories rather than on controlled clinical trials. anecdotal adjective Unsubstantiated; occurring as single or isolated event. claims of individual mobility to override An arrangement whereby commissions are made by sales managers based upon the sales made by their subordinate sales representatives. A term found in an agreement between a real estate agent and a property owner whereby the agent keeps the right to receive a commission for the sale of persistent conclusions from large-scale data analyses. Thus a gap remains in the literature, exemplified by the studies cited above: We have yet to frame the questions about community college student baccalaureate attainment in a sufficiently robust framework. Methods, Variables, and Analysis The present study controlled for the types of students analyzed an·a·lyze tr.v. an·a·lyzed, an·a·lyz·ing, an·a·lyz·es 1. To examine methodically by separating into parts and studying their interrelations. 2. Chemistry To make a chemical analysis of. 3. for baccalaureate attainment. In order to compare similar students, this study included only 1980 high school sophomores who graduated from high school and entered a nonproprietary higher education institution on a full-time basis during 1982. This study excludes students who indicated in a spring 1982 survey that the lowest educational attainment they would be satisfied with was less than a bachelor's degree, and it excludes students who were over 19 years of age during their senior year of high school. Borrowing Grubb's (1991) admittedly arbitrary definition of experimenters as community college students who earned fewer than 12 equivalent semester hours of college credit, this study excludes such students at both two-year and four-year institutions from the analysis. The number of observations meeting these requirements is 1,577, and the source is the High School & Beyond Sophomore Cohort longitudinal lon·gi·tu·di·nal adj. Running in the direction of the long axis of the body or any of its parts. data set (1995). Eliminating the aforementioned a·fore·men·tioned adj. Mentioned previously. n. The one or ones mentioned previously. aforementioned Adjective mentioned before Adj. 1. groups is not an indication that they lack importance. Many postsecondary students delay entry into college, and delayed entry is directly correlated cor·re·late v. cor·re·lat·ed, cor·re·lat·ing, cor·re·lates v.tr. 1. To put or bring into causal, complementary, parallel, or reciprocal relation. 2. with students' ultimate educational attainment (Adelman, 1992). Many high school sophomores do not graduate with their class, yet several eventually earn the equivalent of a high school diploma A high school diploma is a diploma awarded for the completion of high school. In the United States and Canada, it is considered the minimum education required for government jobs and higher education. An equivalent is the GED. , and certainly some progress to college. Indeed these groups of students are important in the study of educational attainment. However, their paths are beyond the scope of this study. This study eliminates those students and evaluates net effects among similar students, defined as "traditional" students, who have the initial goal of earning a baccalaureate degree. Since most two-year colleges do not confer baccalaureate degrees, it appears obvious that four-year institutions would inherently have more matriculants earning the four-year degree. However, given two-year colleges' claim to be enabling institutions, this study follows students' self-declared aspirations: One of the community college's primary purposes has been to accept students from secondary school, provide them with general education and introductory collegiate studies, and send them on to senior institutions for the baccalaureate. (Cohen & Brawer, 1996, p. 330-331) Thus, the current study evaluates students' educational attainment relative to their educational aspirations. Table 1 shows the dependent and independent variables In mathematics, an independent variable is any of the arguments, i.e. "inputs", to a function. These are contrasted with the dependent variable, which is the value, i.e. the "output", of the function. used in this study. While institutional type is the independent variable of interest, this study includes and controls for the other independent variables listed in the table. Existing studies use many of these variables in examinations of educational attainment (Velez, 1985; Anderson, 1984; Whitaker & Pascarella, 1994; Nunley & Breneman, 1988) and, furthermore, they are largely consistent with Tinto's (1993) theory of student departure. The dependent variable is degree attained, as derived from student transcripts in June 1992 and defined as at least a bachelor's degree. The dichotomous di·chot·o·mous adj. 1. Divided or dividing into two parts or classifications. 2. Characterized by dichotomy. di·chot independent variables are institutional type (two-year or four-year college), institutional control (public or private), on-campus employment, high school curriculum (academic or not academic), ethnicity ethnicity Vox populi Racial status–ie, African American, Asian, Caucasian, Hispanic (White or minority), gender (male or female), living quarters during first year in college (provided by parents or not provided by parents), and high school activities (active as leaders or not active as leaders). High school and college grades are on a seven-point scale ranging from one for mostly D grades to seven for mostly A grades. Other independent variables included in the study are composite scores of cognitive tests Cognitive tests are assessments of the cognitive capabilities of humans and animals. Tests administered to humans include various forms of IQ tests; those administered to animals include the mirror test (a test of self-awareness) and the T maze test (which tests learning ability). and socioeconomic status socioeconomic status, n the position of an individual on a socio-economic scale that measures such factors as education, income, type of occupation, place of residence, and in some populations, ethnicity and religion. . The cognitive test variable is a percentile percentile, n the number in a frequency distribution below which a certain percentage of fees will fall. E.g., the ninetieth percentile is the number that divides the distribution of fees into the lower 90% and the upper 10%, or that fee level composite score encompassing several subjects (Tuma & Carroll, 1995). The vocabulary section of the cognitive test asks questions using a synonym synonym (sĭn`ənĭm) [Gr.,=having the same name], word having a meaning that is the same as or very similar to the meaning of another word of the same language. Some are alike in some meanings only, as live and dwell. format, and the reading section asks comprehensive questions based on analysis and interpretation of short passages. The mathematics section asks students to determine if one quantity is larger than another quantity, if they are equal, or if the given information is insufficient. Science questions reflect science knowledge and scientific reasoning ability. The writing section assesses students' writing ability and basic grammar skills. The civics civics, branch of learning that treats of the relationship between citizens and their society and state, originally called civil government. With the large immigration into the United States in the latter half of the 19th cent. education section centers on principles of law, government, and social behavior In biology, psychology and sociology social behavior is behavior directed towards, or taking place between, members of the same species. Behavior such as predation which involves members of different species is not social. (Zahs, Podlow, Morrissey, Marnell, & Nichols, 1995). The socioeconomic status variable is a composite score giving equal weight to "father's occupation, father's education, mother's education, family income, and material possessions in the home" (Tuma & Carroll, p. 78). Tinto (1993) argues that students enter an institution with preentry attributes (family background, skills, abilities, and prior schooling) and external influences that determine their level of intent and commitment (both of which are important personal dispositions). Tinto's model also recognizes many external demands. Tinto suggests that students constantly redefine Verb 1. redefine - give a new or different definition to; "She redefined his duties" define, delimit, delimitate, delineate, specify - determine the essential quality of 2. intent and commitment through formal or informal contact with an institution's social and academic system; his underlying premise is that some degree of integration is necessary for persistence. Applying Tinto's theory, this study controls for students' backgrounds (gender, ethnicity, and family socioeconomic status), skills, abilities, prior schooling (high school GPA GPA abbr. grade point average Noun 1. GPA - a measure of a student's academic achievement at a college or university; calculated by dividing the total number of grade points received by the total number attempted , aptitude test ap·ti·tude test n. An occupation-oriented test for evaluating intelligence, achievement, and interest. scores, type of high school curriculum, and leadership involvement in extracurricular high school activities), social contacts with the institution (living quarters during the first year, and on-campus employment), and academic achievement at the institution (first-year GPA). Since the dependent variable is dichotomous, an appropriate tool for analysis is logit regression. In the logit analysis, the dichotomous dependent variable is transformed into the natural logarithm Natural logarithm Logarithm to the base e (approximately 2.7183). of its odds ratio (that is, its logit). In such a transformation, the "substantive relationship remains nonlinear A system in which the output is not a uniform relationship to the input. nonlinear - (Scientific computation) A property of a system whose output is not proportional to its input. but the form of the relationship is linear and can therefore be analyzed" (Menard, 1995, p. 10). Logit analysis determines the impact of a given independent variable while controlling for other variables in the model and, furthermore, it can handle any combination of independent variables despite their differing scales of measurement (Demaris, 1992). Statistical tests determine the significance of results. The output models the likelihood of earning at least a bachelor's degree, and the model uses an NCES NCES National Center for Education Statistics NCES Net-Centric Enterprise Services (US DoD) NCES Network Centric Enterprise Services NCES Net Condition Event Systems derived weight "to compensate for unequal selection probabilities and to adjust for nonresponse" (Zahs et al., 1995, p. 24). Unequal selection probabilities refer to the NCES research design that oversamples students with certain characteristics. The likelihood ratio chi-square statistic statistic, n a value or number that describes a series of quantitative observations or measures; a value calculated from a sample. statistic a numerical value calculated from a number of observations in order to summarize them. determines the overall value of the model. Comparing the category predicted by the model to the actual data helps to assess the quality of the model, as do certain statistics designed to measure the association of predicted probabilities with actual, observed responses. The Wald chi-square statistic and its associated probability assess the significance of independent variables (SAS Institute SAS Institute Inc., headquartered in Cary, North Carolina, USA, has been a major producer of software since it was founded in 1976 by Anthony Barr, James Goodnight, John Sall and Jane Helwig. , 1995). Findings and Discussion Two-year and four-year college matriculants differ on several variables. Table 2 displays weighted means and standard deviations In statistics, the average amount a number varies from the average number in a series of numbers. (statistics) standard deviation - (SD) A measure of the range of values in a set of numbers. by institutional type. Matriculants at two-year colleges are more likely to be male and non-White, and are less likely to complete an academic high school curriculum or participate as leaders in a high school extracurricular activity than are matriculants at four-year institutions. The most notable difference by institutional type is socioeconomic status, which is much higher for four-year college matriculants than for their two-year counterparts. Table 3 displays correlation statistics. Attending a two-year college is inversely in·verse adj. 1. Reversed in order, nature, or effect. 2. Mathematics Of or relating to an inverse or an inverse function. 3. Archaic Turned upside down; inverted. n. 1. related to being White, achieving a strong high school grade point average (GPA), earning a four-year degree, having an academic high school curriculum, participating as a leader in high school activities, having a high socioeconomic status, having an on-campus job at first institution, and attending a private institution. Table 4 reports the results of modeling baccalaureate degree attainment using logit regression. The chi-square (-2 log likelihood) statistic is functionally similar to an overall F test in ordinary least squares regression. Since the -2 log likelihood statistic reported in Table 4 is significant to the probability value level .0001, it offers convincing evidence that the model fits the data better than does the intercept intercept in mathematical terms the points at which a curve cuts the two axes of a graph. by itself. At least one parameter (1) Any value passed to a program by the user or by another program in order to customize the program for a particular purpose. A parameter may be anything; for example, a file name, a coordinate, a range of values, a money amount or a code of some kind. estimate is statistically significant (Liao, 1994; Aldrich & Nelson, 1984; SAS Institute, 1995). The Table 4 coefficients are relative to three measurement scales: the estimated logit probability, the standardized standardized pertaining to data that have been submitted to standardization procedures. standardized morbidity rate see morbidity rate. standardized mortality rate see mortality rate. estimate, and the odds of baccalaureate degree attainment. Parameter estimates represent the net additive effect additive effect n. An effect in which two substances or actions used in combination produce a total effect the same as the sum of the individual effects. caused by a one-unit change in the respective independent variables on the estimated logit probability of baccalaureate degree attainment. Respective odds ratios represent the net multiplicative mul·ti·pli·ca·tive adj. 1. Tending to multiply or capable of multiplying or increasing. 2. Having to do with multiplication. mul effect caused by a one-unit change in the respective independent variables on the odds of baccalaureate degree attainment (Retherford & Choe, 1993). The exponentiated value of a given parameter estimate is its odds ratio. Standardized estimates refer to the standard deviation change caused in the estimated logit of the dependent variable by a one standard deviation change in independent variables (Menard, 1995). Table 4 also provides the marginal net effect of independent variables on baccalaureate degree attainment; that is, the net effect of a unit change in a given independent parameter on the probability of earning a four-year degree. The margin for continuous variables is defined as a one standard deviation increase from the weighted mean. Comparing the Hosmer and Lemeshow (1989) statistic, as reported in Table 4, to the chi-square distribution chi-square distribution in statistical terms this is said of a variable with K degrees of freedom if it is distributed like the sum of the squares of K independent random variables each of which has a normal distribution with mean zero and variance of 1. forbids rejecting the null hypothesis; the null hypothesis of the Hosmer and Lemeshow test is that the model provides a good fit to the data. The model correctly classified 80.4% of all observations (1,268 of 1,577 observations), including 82.3% of baccalaureate degree recipients and 66.7% of students who did not earn baccalaureate degrees. "Classification is sensitive to the relative sizes of the two component groups and will always favor classification into the larger group" (Hosmer & Lemeshow, 1989, p. 147). This study evaluates the significance of parameter estimates by their respective Wald chi-square probability values; probability values reflected the chi-square distribution with one degree of freedom. The alpha level for interpreting significance is .05. Socioeconomic status, institutional type, institutional control, on-campus employment, high school GPA, first-year college GPA, cognitive test scores, and participation in high school activities are all statistically significant and, notwithstanding high school activities, all significant parameter estimates have the expected sign of causality causality, in philosophy, the relationship between cause and effect. A distinction is often made between a cause that produces something new (e.g., a moth from a caterpillar) and one that produces a change in an existing substance (e.g. . The confusing con·fuse v. con·fused, con·fus·ing, con·fus·es v.tr. 1. a. To cause to be unable to think with clarity or act with intelligence or understanding; throw off. b. findings regarding the high school activity variable may relate to the fact that the variable includes social activities (athletics athletics or track and field also track-and-field games Variety of sport competitions held on a running track and on the adjacent field. It is the oldest form of organized sports, having been a part of the ancient Olympic Games from c. , cheerleading The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Please [ improve this article] or discuss the issue on the talk page. , band, dance, service clubs, fraternities and sororities
The terms "fraternity" and "sorority" (from the Latin words frater and soror ) as well as academic activities (honorary clubs, school newspaper, debate, subject matter clubs, student government, and youth organizations). Furthermore, the variable is self-reported and reflects students' senior year in high school instead of the more preferable period of students' first year in college which would reflect students' involvement with their postsecondary institutions. Other independent variables included in the model are not statistically significant. Ethnicity is more highly correlated with socioeconomic status than it is with any other variable (see Table 3), and therefore it is likely that the categorized cat·e·go·rize tr.v. cat·e·go·rized, cat·e·go·riz·ing, cat·e·go·riz·es To put into a category or categories; classify. cat ethnicity variable offers little explanatory ex·plan·a·to·ry adj. Serving or intended to explain: an explanatory paragraph. ex·plan power to the model above and beyond that which is explained by socioeconomic status. Even studies that fail to control for socioeconomic status have similar findings regarding ethnicity (Piazza piazza Open square or marketplace, surrounded by buildings, in an Italian town or city. It was equivalent to the plaza of Spanish-speaking countries. The term became more widely used in the 16th–18th century, denoting any large open space with buildings around it. , 1996; Trawick, 1994). The variable of living quarters does not adequately differentiate students because the survey question regarding living quarters is so vague that responses are not exclusive of living in residence halls. The question simply asks if the students' parents provided living quarters for 1983, and thus it may be interpreted as not exclusive with living in college residence housing. Nearly 85% of students at two-year and four-year institutions indicated that they had living quarters at their parents' homes; many students living on-campus likely indicated that they had living quarters at their parents' homes. When ranking the relative strength of independent variables on the dependent variable, the standardized estimate serves as the appropriate criterion (Menard, 1995). According to the standardized estimates (see Table 4) and when considering only significant variables, college GPA, socioeconomic status, on-campus employment, high school GPA, cognitive test scores, high school activities, institutional control, and institutional type have the strongest influence on baccalaureate degree attainment. Although many variables influence baccalaureate degree attainment more strongly than does institutional type, institutional type has significant net effects and therefore the null hypothesis, which claims that no statistically significant difference exists regarding traditional students' baccalaureate degree completion based upon institutional type of initial matriculation, is rejected. A useful measure of the net association between the event of baccalaureate degree attainment and statistically significant independent variables is the odds ratio. The odds of attaining a baccalaureate degree increase by a factor of 1.4 for students attending a private institution, and they increase by a factor of 2.3 for students who have on-campus jobs. A one-unit change in college grades increases the odds of attaining the four-year degree by a factor of 1.8, while a one-unit change in high school grades increases the odds by a factor of 1.2. Students first enrolling at a two-year college reduce their odds of earning a bachelor's degree by a factor of .54. Similarly, students involved as leaders in high school activities reduce their odds of earning a bachelor's degree by a factor of .72. A one standard deviation change in cognitive test scores and socioeconomic status increases the odds of earning the baccalaureate degree by factors of 1.2 and 1.7, respectively. From Table 2, the weighted means, it is apparent that students first enrolling at two-year colleges have a 56% likelihood of earning the baccalaureate degree, and students first enrolling at four-year colleges have a 79% likelihood of earning the baccalaureate degree. Thus the gross difference in the likelihood of earning a baccalaureate degree is about 23%. Controlling for the other independent variables in the model, the net difference of initial matriculation at a two-year college, as opposed to a four-year college, is a 10.3% reduction in the probability of attaining a baccalaureate degree, a figure more modest than what is suggested by the existing literature. Conclusions and Implications This study compares baccalaureate degree attainment of two-year versus four-year college matriculants through careful control of variables and a restrictive selection of observations. The current study not only excludes students who did not enroll immediately after high school completion, but it also excludes those who experiment with higher education (defined as students who earn fewer than 12 hours of credit), those older than 19 years of age during their senior year in high school, those who enroll part-time, and those who do not aspire to aspire to verb aim for, desire, pursue, hope for, long for, crave, seek out, wish for, dream about, yearn for, hunger for, hanker after, be eager for, set your heart on, set your sights on, be ambitious for the four-year degree. Thus, a very select group of traditional students is identified and used as observations, avoiding assessment of the many students who experiment with college as well as those who delay between high school and college. Given the disproportionate dis·pro·por·tion·ate adj. Out of proportion, as in size, shape, or amount. dis pro·por number of
experimenters at two-year colleges, excluding experimenters is an
important characteristic of this study. The analysis also controls for
variables typically used in such studies, including gender, ethnicity,
high school GPA, high school curriculum, composite score of cognitive
ability, family socioeconomic status, on-campus employment, control of
entering institution, high school extracurricular activities, living
quarters, and first-year grades in college.The findings reported here differ from the findings reported in the existing research. This study concludes that the net effect of enrolling at a two-year college reduces the probability of baccalaureate degree attainment by just over 10%. It is important to note, however, that a limitation of this study is that it follows 1982 high school graduates for 10 years of post-secondary study and, therefore, inferences are a full generation removed from today's college students. While inferences are thus a full generation removed from today's college students, they probably still apply. A more recent national dataset identified a relationship between educational attainment (within six years of matriculation) and many of the same variables used in this study's model, such as immediate, full-time college entry after high school, type and control of the students' first institutions, as well as students' pre-college academic credentials CREDENTIALS, international law. The instruments which authorize and establish a public minister in his character with the state or prince to whom they are addressed. If the state or prince receive the minister, he can be received only in the quality attributed to him in his credentials. , family income, and degree goals (Berker, He, & Forrest Capaldi, 2002). When compared to other variables, the net influence of institutional type is far from the most important criterion in determining baccalaureate degree attainment. According to standardized estimates, the most influential independent variables that enter the model significantly are first-year college GPA, socioeconomic status, on-campus employment, high school GPA, and then institutional type, followed closely by cognitive test scores, institutional control, and high school activities. While this study focuses on student baccalaureate attainment at two-year and four-year institutions, its broader concern is equity of opportunity and the resultant This article is about the resultant of polynomials. For the result of adding two or more vectors, see Parallelogram rule. For the technique in organ building, see Resultant (organ). In mathematics, the resultant of two monic polynomials benefits associated with higher educational attainment, a problem addressed by many scholars (Brint & Karabel, 1989; Cohen & Brawer, 1996; Dougherty, 1992). Opportunity is linked to students' starting place within the higher educational structure (Pascarella & Terenzini, 1991), and this study clarifies one important consequence--baccalaureate attainment--resulting from students' starting place. It is not clear, however, that the effects of institutional type occur across all types of students and institutions. This study's controls for age and experimenter status have a definite effect and serve as a reminder that who students are has an impact on what they do. Nationally representative data sets typically follow a high school cohort for 10 or 14 years after high school graduation and therefore their ability to gain a comprehensive representation of the educational attainment of nontraditional students is limited. Similarly, what institutions are has an impact on what they do. This study compares educational attainment by institutional type, and it would be inaccurate to claim that all four-year institutions are similar or that all two-year institutions are similar. Missions of four-year institutions differ by the relative importance they place on research, teaching, and public service. Similarly, two-year colleges differ, with some emphasizing the transfer function and others the vocational track. Observations in this study include students who attended a wide variety of two-year and four-year institutions, and the analysis here is concerned with the overall effects of institutional type on baccalaureate degree attainment. In review of continued analyses of college graduation rates of the two-year college student, it is clear that researchers continue to reevaluate the importance of different variables. The research on baccalaureate attainment is far from complete, requiring additional research on traditional-aged full-time students Full-Time Student A status that is important for determining dependency exemptions. An individual enrolled in a post-secondary institution may be eligible for certain tax breaks. Notes: The full-time status is based on what the individual's school considers full time. at two-year and four-year institutions, as well as examinations of programs addressing non-traditional students Non-traditional student is an American English term referring to students at higher education institutions (undergraduate college or university) who generally fall into two categories: What this study makes clear is that when there are controls for student characteristics that clearly reflect opportunities for increased involvement and commitment (students are full-time and moving ahead in education in its traditional arrangement), the institutional effect on baccalaureate attainment is not as substantial as previously argued or shown in empirical analyses. Further investigation of specific types of institutions' effect on traditional and non-traditional students will help to clarify conditions of equity of opportunity in higher education in the United States Higher education in the United States refers to colleges and universities within the United States. Overview The American university system, like the American educational system in general, is highly decentralized because the U.S. .
Table 1
Independent and Dependent Variables
Variable Coding Use
Gender Male = 1, Independent
female = 0. variable
Ethnicity White = 1, Independent
non-White = 0. * variable
High school GPA Ranged from mostly A (7) to Independent
mostly D (1) variable
High school Academic program = 1, Independent
curriculum non-academic program = 0 variable
Bachelor's degree Bachelor's degree or Dependent
by 6/1992 higher = 1, less than variable
bachelor's degree = 0
Cognitive test score Continuous over range Independent
(composite) 34.16 to 70.35 variable
Composite family Continuous over range
socioeconomic -1.887 to 1.85 Independent
status in 1982 -1.887 to 1.85 variable
Institutional type of Two-year college = 1, Independent
original matriculation four-year college = 0 variable of
interest
On-campus job at first On-campus job = 1, Independent
institution enrolled no on-campus job = 0 variable
Control of entering Public = 0, private = 1 Independent
institution variable
High school Students who had participated Independent
extracurricular as "leaders" = 1, students who variable
activities did not participate as
leaders = 0
Living quarters, 1983 Students reporting that parents Independent
provided living quarters during variable
1983 = 1, others = 0
First year college GPA Ranged from mostly A (7) to Independent
mostly D (1) variable
* For purposes of this study, persons of Hispanic heritage are
all coded as non-White.
Table 2
Weighted Means and Standard Deviations by College Type
Two-year Four-year
College College All College
Variable Students Students Students
N=200 N=1,377 N=1,577
Gender (male) .51 .50 .50
(.48) (.50) (.50)
Ethnicity (White) .78 .85 .85
(.40) (.35) (.36)
High school GPA 4.82 5.31 5.26
(1.14) -1.14 (1.15)
High school curriculum .77 .88 .87
(academic) (.40) (.33) (.34)
Bachelor's degree by 6/1992 .56 .79 .76
(.48) (.41) (.42)
Cognitive test score 55.33 60.27 59.70
(composite) (7.37) (6.19) (6.55)
Composite family .26 .55 .52
socioeconomic status (.64) (.68) (.68)
On-campus job at .20 .37 .35
first institution enrolled (.38) (.49) (.48)
Control of entering .08 .36 .33
institution (private) (.26) (.48) (.47)
High school (.56) .66 .65
extracurricular activities (.48) (.48) (.48)
Living quarters, 1983 .89 .87 .88
(parents provided) (.30) (.33) (.33)
Self-reported first-year 4.75 4.83 4.82
college grades (1.23) (1.20) (1.21)
Institution type (two-year) .12
(.32)
Note: Weights are normalized to the actual sample size.
Standard deviations in parentheses.
Table 3
Correlation Analysis (N=1,577)
Variable 2 3 4
1 Gender (male) -.03 -.18 -.03
2 Race (White) .09 .01
3 High school GPA .09
4 High school curriculum (academic)
5 Bachelor's degree by 6/1992
6 Composite score of cognitive ability
7 Composite family socioeconomic status
8 On-campus job at first institution enrolled
9 Control of entering institution (private)
10 High school extracurricular activities
11 Living quarters, 1983
12 Self-reported first-year college grades
13 Institutional type (two-year college)
Variable 5 6 7
1 Gender (male) .00 .08 -.01
2 Race (White) .12 .25 .22
3 High school GPA .25 .44 .04
4 High school curriculum (academic) .11 .25 .05
5 Bachelor's degree by 6/1992 .29 .23
6 Composite score of cognitive ability .21
7 Composite family socioeconomic status
8 On-campus job at first institution enrolled
9 Control of entering institution (private)
10 High school extracurricular activities
11 Living quarters, 1983
12 Self-reported first-year college grades
13 Institutional type (two-year college)
Variable 8 9 10
1 Gender (male) -.06 -.02 -.05
2 Race (White) .01 .09 .00
3 High school GPA .13 .10 .15
4 High school curriculum (academic) .03 .08 .09
5 Bachelor's degree by 6/1992 .14 .15 -.01
6 Composite score of cognitive ability .14 .21 .01
7 Composite family socioeconomic status -.09 .15 -.01
8 On-campus job at first institution enrolled .10 .07
9 Control of entering institution (private) .00
10 High school extracurricular activities
11 Living quarters, 1983
12 Self-reported first-year college grades
13 Institutional type (two-year college)
Variable 11 12 13
1 Gender (male) -.02 -.08 .01
2 Race (White) .04 .10 -.07
3 High school GPA -.06 .49 -.14
4 High school curriculum (academic) -.03 .06 -.11
5 Bachelor's degree by 6/1992 .00 .32 -.17
6 Composite score of cognitive ability -.02 .33 -.24
7 Composite family socioeconomic status .06 .06 -.14
8 On-campus job at first institution enrolled -.08 .07 -.11
9 Control of entering institution (private) .08 .11 -.19
10 High school extracurricular activities -.05 .10 -.06
11 Living quarters, 1983 -.03 .02
12 Self-reported first-year college grades -.02
13 Institutional type (two-year college)
Note: Weights are normalized to the actual sample size.
Table 4
Logit Regression Results for Modeling Baccalaureate Degree Attainment
(N = 1,577, Sum of Weights = 1,577)
Model Fitting Information and Testing Global Null Hypothesis BETA=0
Criterion Intercept Intercept and Chi-Square for Covariates
Only Covariates
-2 LOG L 1721.412 1381.247 340.165 with 12 DF (p=0.0001)
Analysis of Maximum Likelihood Estimates
Parameter Standard Wald
Variable Estimate Error Chi-Square
Cognitive test scores 0.0267 0.0122 4.8036 ([dagger])
Composite family SES 0.7767 0.1064 53.2442 *
Institutional type -0.6079 0.1951 9.7113 *
Institutional control 0.3602 0.1604 5.0453 ([dagger])
On-campus job 0.8189 0.1583 26.7685 *
H.S. curriculum 0.3171 0.1893 2.8064
Ethnicity 0.0229 0.1870 0.0150
Gender 0.2168 0.1399 2.402
H.S. grades 0.1762 0.0708 6.1984 ([dagger])
Living quarters 0.0297 0.2072 0.0206
College GPA 0.5608 0.0663 71.5945 *
H.S. activities -0.3310 0.1441 5.2796 ([dagger])
Intercept -4.6554 0.6617 49.5012
Analysis of Maximum Likelihood Estimates
Standardized Odds Net
Variable Estimate Ratio Effects (1)
Cognitive test scores 0.0964 1.027 2.4%
Composite family SES 0.2906 2.174 6.5%
Institutional type -0.1076 0.544 -10.3%
Institutional control 0.0934 1.434 5.1%
On-campus job 0.2152 2.268 11.2%
H.S. curriculum 0.0593 1.373 5.0%
Ethnicity 0.0046 1.023 0.3%
Gender 0.5980 1.242 3.2%
H.S. grades 0.1114 1.193 2.8%
Living quarters 0.0054 1.030 0.4%
College GPA 0.3728 1.752 7.9%
H.S. activities -0.0872 0.718 -4.7%
Intercept
Association of Predicted Probabilities and Observed Responses
Concordant = 79.8% Somers' D = 0.598
Discordant = 20.0% Gamma = 0.599
Tied = 0.2% Tau-a = 0.218
(452,400 pairs) c = 0.799
Note: Weights are normalized to the actual sample size. The model
correctly predicts 80.4% of observations. The Hosmer and Lemeshow
(1989) Goodness-of-fit statistic = 5.1061 with 8 DF (p=.7462).
([dagger]) p<.05
* p<.01
(1) The margin used to calculate net effects for college GPA,
high school GPA, cognitive test scores, and SES is a one standard
deviation increase from the mean.
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Zahs, D., Pedlow, S., Morrissey, M., Marnell, P., and Nichols, B. (1995). High school and beyond fourth follow-up methodology report. (Report No. NCES95305). Chicago: The University of Chicago. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED386459). Zwerling, S. (1976). The crisis of the community college: Second best. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company. Ray Christie is an interim vice provost for academic administration at Central Michigan University Central Michigan University, at Mount Pleasant, Mich.; coeducational; est. 1892 as a normal school, became Central State Teachers College in 1927, achieved university status in 1959. The university maintains a forest that is used for botanical and biological research. in Mount Pleasant. chris2r@cmich.edu Philo Hutcheson is an associate professor in the Department of Educational Policy Studies at Georgia State University in Atlanta. phutches@gsu.edu |
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