College Affordability Views DATA POINT January 2022 and College Enrollment NCES 2022-057 U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION A Publication of the National Center for Education Statistics at IES This Data Point uses data from the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 (HSLS:09). HSLS:09 is a national study of more than 23,000 students in ninth grade in 2009. Students answered surveys between 2009 and 2016. College transcripts were collected in 2017-18. This Data Point looks at the connection between views of college affordability in high school and college enrollment and employment 3 years after high school.1 How do views of college affordability in high school FIGURE 1. College enrollment and employment rates in 2016 for the high relate to college enrollment and school class of 2013, by their views of college affordability in 2012 employment? Percent In 2012, when most study students 100 were in eleventh grade, they were asked whether they agreed with the 80 following statement: “Even if you get accepted to college, your family 58 60 cannot afford to send you.” Thirty-two percent agreed or 43 38 strongly agreed.2 40 32 Students and parents often think 20 20 college costs more than it does.3 10 These views may be associated 0 with decisions to apply to college. Family cannot afford college Family can afford college Many factors are related to students’ enrollment in postsecondary Enrolled in college Employed only Not enrolled or employed education, including but not limited to family resources, educational NOTE: College affordability is measured by student answers to the following question: expectations and plans for future "How much do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Even if you get accepted careers.4 College affordability views to college, your family cannot afford to send you." Enrollment and employment show the are just one factor in whether percentage of young adults in each category in February 2016. These data provide a students enroll. snapshot of 2009 ninth-graders in 2016; some students who were not enrolled in 2016 already attended some college and had left or completed a degree. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, High Three years after high school, School Longitudinal Study of 2009 (HSLS:09) First and Second Follow-Up. 58 percent of students5 who thought their family could afford to send them to college (“afforders”) were in college or employed in 2016, than their 2016 status. This measure enrolled in college. Only 38 percent compared to 10 percent of afforders. includes any students who may have of students who thought their already completed a degree or left family could not afford to send them Does the connection between school by 2016. Parents' education to college (“non-afforders”) were affordability views and college level is included because previous enrolled (FIGURE 1). attendance differ by parent research has noted differences in education? For non-afforders, 43 percent were college preparation and attendance employed only6 versus 32 percent The outcome for this research by family characteristics. of afforders. Twenty percent of question focuses on whether a non-afforders were not enrolled student ever attended college rather To learn more about the data collection used in this report, visit https://nces.ed.gov/surveys/hsls09/hsls09_data.asp. For questions about content or to view this report and supplemental tables online, go to https://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2022057. College Affordability Views and College Enrollment Students are more likely to attend Eighty percent of afforders ever parent education, larger percentages college within 3 years of high school attended college, compared to of afforders than non-afforders if they think their family can afford 59 percent of non-afforders.8 The attended college (FIGURE 2). The it. Students are also more likely to difference between afforders and difference in college attendance attend any college within 3 years of non-afforders exists for students between afforders and non-afforders high school if at least one of their whose parents attended college ranges from 12 percentage points to parents earned a college degree or and for students whose parents did 21 percentage points.9 certificate.7 not attend college. At each level of FIGURE 2. College attendance rates by 2016 for the high school class of 2013, by their views of college affordability and highest level of parent education in 2012 Parent has high school diploma or less Family cannot afford college 55 Family can afford college 67 Parent has certificate or Associate’s degree Family cannot afford college 59 Family can afford college 79 Parent has Bachelor’s or graduate degree Family cannot afford college 71 Family can afford college 90 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent ever attended college NOTE: College affordability is measured by student answers to the following question: "How much do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Even if you get accepted to college, your family cannot afford to send you." Parent education is the highest level of education achieved by either parent. "Percent ever attended college" shows the percentage of young adults in each category who ever attended any college or trade school by February 2016. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 (HSLS:09) First and Second Follow-Up. Endnotes Department of Education. Washington, young adults were no longer students in D.C.: National Center for Education 2016. 1 Three years after high school represents Statistics. Retrieved from 6 In this Data Point, “employed only” the timing of the HSLS:09 Second Follow- https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2019/2019404/. means employed full-time or part-time Up. In 2019, 75 percent of all undergraduates were under the age 4 Chen, X., Lauff, E., Arbeit, C.A., Henke, and not enrolled in postsecondary education. of 25. See Digest of Education Statistics R., Skomsvold, P., and Hufford, J. (2017). 7 Not in figures; see supplemental table 4. 2020, table 303.50. In this Data Point, the Early Millennials: The Sophomore Class of term "college enrollment" is used to refer 2002 a Decade Later. (NCES 2017-437). U.S. 8 Not in figures; see supplemental table 3. to enrollment in any postsecondary Department of Education. Washington, 9 The differences do not appear to match education. D.C.: National Center for Education Figure 2 due to rounding. Statistics. Retrieved from 2 Not in figures; see supplemental https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2017/ Table 1. 2017437.pdf. 3 Velez, E. D., & Horn, L. (2018). What High 5 In this Data Point, the term “student” is Schoolers and Their Parents Know about used to refer to members of the HSLS:09 Public 4-Year Tuition and Fees in Their 2009 ninth-grade cohort. Some of these State. (NCES 2019-404). U.S. This National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) Data Point presents information on an education topic of current interest. It was authored by Brian Freeman and Sandra Wilson of Abt Associates. Data are from samples with margins of error. To see if estimates differ when margins of error are considered, statistical tests need to be done. Some apparent differences in estimates cannot be said to be different once these tests are used. All stated differences are statistically different at the .05 level. No tests were made for multiple comparisons. Efforts were also made to limit the effects of errors not related to sampling.