Panel Paper:
The Returns to Education at Community Colleges: New Evidence from the Education Longitudinal Survey
Monday, June 13, 2016
:
11:30 AM
Clement House, 3rd Floor, Room 02 (London School of Economics)
*Names in bold indicate Presenter
Community colleges have long been recognized for the potential role they can play in
providing access to post-secondary education for students of limited means. Indeed, the
recent #FreeTuition movement is fundamentally reliant on community colleges as the
cornerstone of its proposals. Previous research on the value of community colleges in
shaping earnings and career outcomes suggests that encouraging access to community
college is a good investment. But, the evidence base on this issue is limited. The main
limitations stem from the fact that what we know comes from data collected from cohorts
of students who studied in community colleges more than twenty years ago. In the
meantime, the market for higher education has changed drastically, and the Great
Recession and economy of the early 21st Century have reshaped how young Americans
are educated and begin their careers. For these reasons, we update the evidence on the
employment and earnings effects of community college education. We study the
experiences of the Educational Longitudinal Survey cohort, which graduated from high
school and began studying in community colleges at the start of the Great Recession, and
who began their working careers in the years after. We argue that the experiences of this
cohort are important in their own right, since they provide insight into the experiences of
American workers during and after one of the largest economic downturns in modern
history. Moreover, this paper will provide insight into the role post-secondary education
plays in shaping economic security more generally.
providing access to post-secondary education for students of limited means. Indeed, the
recent #FreeTuition movement is fundamentally reliant on community colleges as the
cornerstone of its proposals. Previous research on the value of community colleges in
shaping earnings and career outcomes suggests that encouraging access to community
college is a good investment. But, the evidence base on this issue is limited. The main
limitations stem from the fact that what we know comes from data collected from cohorts
of students who studied in community colleges more than twenty years ago. In the
meantime, the market for higher education has changed drastically, and the Great
Recession and economy of the early 21st Century have reshaped how young Americans
are educated and begin their careers. For these reasons, we update the evidence on the
employment and earnings effects of community college education. We study the
experiences of the Educational Longitudinal Survey cohort, which graduated from high
school and began studying in community colleges at the start of the Great Recession, and
who began their working careers in the years after. We argue that the experiences of this
cohort are important in their own right, since they provide insight into the experiences of
American workers during and after one of the largest economic downturns in modern
history. Moreover, this paper will provide insight into the role post-secondary education
plays in shaping economic security more generally.
