English

ERIC ED606242: The Costs and Benefits of Early College High Schools

Early Colleges (ECs) represent an expanding college readiness reform that provides students an opportunity to earn up to 60 college credits in high school through dual-enrollment coursework. ECs are intended to target students who are historically underrepresented in postsecondary education and provide additional resources in the form of college advising, summer bridge programs, and other academic supports. Although ECs may increase college enrollment and completion, policymakers currently do not have sufficient evidence to determine whether the benefits are large enough to warrant the costs. This study examines postsecondary outcomes of students who participated in admission lotteries to 10 ECs 6 years after their expected high school graduation. By following students for 6 years after expected high school completion, this is the first study that follows students for a sufficient length of time (i.e., 150% of normal time to completion) to examine impacts on bachelor's degree completion. In addition to examining the impacts of EC on students' educational attainment, the authors conduct a social benefit-cost analysis, examining the comprehensive set of costs and benefits of EC inclu

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