LearnmoreMN Blog

Postsecondary participation, graduation and degree attainment: asking the right questions

By Lesley Lydell, January guest blogger

Are too many people going to college? This was the provocative topic of a recent live debate between entrepreneurs, pundits and academic leaders. While ultimately valuing the breadth of educational options available to students, the debate highlighted the decision to pursue a postsecondary degree amid rising costs and uncertain employment prospects for graduates.

At the same time, many employers, academic organizations and political leaders have issued calls for increased numbers of individuals who have earned a postsecondary degree. Increasing educational attainment nationally was a prominent part of President Obama’s American Graduation Initiative, which set a national goal of 60% of adults age 25-64 having an associate degree or higher by 2020, as well as a key goal for the Lumina Foundation, a major supporter of educational initiatives, and Complete College America, a national initiative started in 2009. A common aspect of these initiatives has been to encourage college participation for recent high school graduates but also to encourage adults and those already in the workforce to pursue and complete a postsecondary credential.

Data in the revised edition of Minnesota Measures: 2011 Report on Higher Education Performance illustrate an overall increase in students’ participation in postsecondary education and graduation rates, as well as broader postsecondary attainment rates in the overall population.

Increasing participation of high school graduates and older students

• For all Minnesota high school graduates, the number who go on to college increased in 2010 to 71% enrolling in college within a year of their high school graduation. Of the 71% of high school graduates who go directly on to college, nearly three-quarters chose a postsecondary institution in Minnesota.
• Most Minnesota undergraduates in fall 2010 were age 24 and younger and attended full-time at a four-year institution, although the largest increase in undergraduate enrollment during the past decade has been at Minnesota two-year institutions among students age 20 and older.
• At both two-year and four-year institutions, students between 25 and 34 had the greatest increases in enrollment over the past decade: a 117% enrollment increase at two-year institutions in the state and a 19% increase at four-year institutions.

High population attainment and increasing graduation rates
Minnesota ranks highly among states in educational attainment rates, which measure in broad terms through U.S. Census data the education level of the population, whether or not they graduated from a Minnesota institution. Attainment rates do not include postsecondary credentials below an associate degree, and Minnesota postsecondary institutions award nearly as many certificates as associate degrees. Some key findings:

• Postsecondary attainment has increased substantially over the past 40 years, with the percentage of bachelor’s degree recipients nearly tripling since 1970 in Minnesota.
• For the traditional working-age population of 18-64 year olds, 41% of Minnesotans have an associate degree or higher, ranking sixth-highest in attainment nationwide.
• Among younger age groups, 49% of Minnesotans age 25-34 and 35-44 have an associate degree or higher, ranking third- and second-highest, respectively, nationwide.
• Sizeable gaps exist, however, in postsecondary attainment between racial and ethnic population groups over age 25, with only Asian (50%) and white Minnesotans (42%) exceeding the state average (41%) and the national average (38%).

Although Minnesota attracts many graduates from other states to live and work, increases in graduation rates at Minnesota institutions have also contributed to the increase in postsecondary attainment rates:

• In 2010, 40% of undergraduates earned their degree within four years and 61% graduated within six years, representing five and three percent increases, respectively, since 2005.
• The number of academic awards earned across all levels annually by Minnesota postsecondary students has been increasing over the past decade, ranging from a 146% increase in master’s degrees awarded to a 15% increase in certificates.

Minnesota overall has high rates of postsecondary participation, graduation, degree attainment, and granting of academic awards from doctorates to certificates. Exploring how we can ensure that all students are prepared and have the opportunity to succeed in postsecondary education may yield the most productive discussions. What are the important questions we should be asking about postsecondary attainment at the local level, in Minnesota, and nationally?

Helping adult learners be successful

By Anne Marie Leland, October guest blogger

As Minnesota State Economist Tom Stinson said earlier this month, “Focusing just on expenditure cuts may be short sighted — productivity growth and long term cost saving may require investments which increase short term expenditures.”

Suggesting that the state consider expenditures that don’t have a “right now” economic impact may be considered difficult in light of the current Minnesota budget woes. There is ample data and rationale to suggest otherwise when we consider the population of Minnesota adults who are low-wage and educationally underprepared.

As discussed in my first post, postsecondary education is critical for our economic competitiveness. By 2018, 70% of all jobs in Minnesota will require some postsecondary training beyond high school. Currently, 40% of working adults have no high school diploma, only a high school diploma or have some postsecondary education (no degree or certificate). Current demographics make it impossible for this need to be filled solely from new high school graduates. Minnesota FastTRAC aims to be a key strategy to help close that gap by creating adult career pathways for low-wage, low-skilled Minnesotans.

According to the 2008 US Census — American Community Survey, Minnesota has a significant population of working learners, ages 18-64, who may not have the basic skills required to enter and succeed in postsecondary education. Of these working learners,

• 251,210 have no high school diploma or GED
• 892,744 have a high school diploma but have not entered college

Adults with basic skill needs entering postsecondary and career and technical education (CTE) programs are often at a disadvantage. Adult working learners face a myriad of other challenges — the need to work, support a family, upgrade digital literacy skills — that make persisting in education difficult. Typical challenges for some of these adults include lack of:

• affordable childcare
• transportation
• knowledge in enrolling in postsecondary education
• study skills compared with expected college behavior
• time to enroll in education due to economic and family constraints
• successful experiences in traditional education settings
• stable housing

According to the 2010 US Census, there are now about 544,000 Minnesotans in poverty, comprising 10.8% of the state's population. About one million or one in four, are considered near poor with incomes less than 200 percent of the poverty threshold. When set in the context of Minnesota’s poverty rate hurdles that face low-wage, low-skilled adults present a challenge when addressing the skills gap.

For some, it is difficult to think about investing in adult education when there are comparable issues facing our youth. Yet, there are very strong linkages between investing in parents’ education and positive outcomes for their children.

FastTRAC partners see at least three promising connections between the Minnesota FastTRAC initiative and the state’s early education efforts:

1. As the evidence shows, increasing parents’ educational levels is good for their kids, and FastTRAC is based on nationally promising career pathway models to assist low-wage adults in particular to access education, good jobs, and family-sustaining careers;
2. Possible connections between existing early childhood education programs and FastTRAC adult career pathway programs to systemically pursue “dual generation strategies” and provide the quality child care/supportive services adult career pathway participant need; and
3. FastTRAC adult career pathway programs in the early childhood education field to help prepare quality early education practitioners (who can really relate to the low-income parents of the children in these programs).

As noted by Tom Stinson, increasing productivity — especially among our state’s working adults — is a prudent and wise investment. The FastTRAC model fits this paradigm in that it has the potential to greatly increase productivity for the target population of low-skilled adults AND the investment can be made through the proven use of re-directed existing funds and collaborative partnerships.

For an up close look at a local FastTRAC program in Southern Minnesota, please watch this video and hear from students, service providers and employers.

Advocating for Adult Learners

By Laura Gilbert, May guest blogger

For generations the U.S. has been a world leader in postsecondary education both in quality and in the percentage of our population with a two- or four-year college degree. Estimated to be about 40%, this number has remained steady for the past 40 years. Eager to compete in an in information-driven, global economy, other countries stepped up efforts to educate their population. To remain competitive the National Center for Higher Education Management Systems estimates the U.S. must produce 15.5 million more degrees than current trends are likely to produce between now and 2025 — or one million additional degrees annually for the next 15 years. If we succeed, the U.S. might match the percentage of graduates in Canada, Japan and South Korea. Failure could have significant economic and social consequences for our country. Estimates suggest traditional-aged students may complete 1.3 million additional degrees during that time period. That still leaves us 14.2 million degrees short.

The solution? Re-engage our adult learners. Three Minnesota efforts are leading the way to do just that.

Becoming college ready
In 2008, the Minnesota State College and University system and Minnesota Department of Education Adult Basic Education launched Minnesota FastTRAC: Training, Resources And Credentialing. FastTRAC is designed to develop pathways to sustainable employment for the 692,000 Minnesotans who hold a high school diploma/GED or less and who are of prime working age. FastTRAC is a systems-level education and training initiative with an emphasis on helping adults who lack the basic skills necessary to enter and complete postsecondary degree and certificate programs. Since its inception, FastTRAC has developed key partnerships to deliver its programs including the Office of Higher Education, Department of Human Services and the Department of Employment and Economic Development.

Finish what you started
An estimated 17.2 million U.S. adults possess some college credits but hold no degree including 336,000 in Minnesota. In fact, the U.S. ranks near the bottom of industrialized countries in the percentage of entering students who complete a degree program. The Midwest Higher Education Compact is exploring the creation of a multi-state credential repository for education, skills and training — Midwest CREST. This program would provide a web-based platform to bank or store college credits earned from multiple institutions. Partner colleges could assess a student’s transcript and “bid” for the opportunity to facilitate his or her completion of a degree. By establishing portability of credits, individuals in our increasingly mobile society will have an opportunity to complete a quality degree no matter how often life requires them to move. Program recommendations will be complete in late 2010.

Engaged in the second half of life
The vision for work after age 50 is changing. Increased life-expectancy, loss of retirement funds and/or one’s job and even the baby boomer culture of “making a difference” or “giving back” all play a part in this shift. Today, four out of five people over 50 plan to work in retirement, whether for enrichment or necessity, often in positions for which they must acquire new skills. Consequently, baby boomers are returning to school in record numbers. To meet this need, in 2008 the American Association of Community Colleges launched a three-year “Plus 50 Learner” initiative across the country to benchmark and showcase innovative community college programs that target the 50+ learner. Century College in Maplewood was one of five institutions selected nationally as a mentor college for the Plus 50 Initiative. Century’s PrimeTime/Plus 50 offers short-term courses in skills development, enrichment and service opportunities; all under the phrase, “Re-hired, re-wired and re-inspired.” In addition, Century has partnered with other Minnesota community colleges to offer a variety of programs of interest to the Plus 50 learner.

Adult learners are quickly becoming the new face of postsecondary education. Federal legislation, philanthropic grants and private ventures have joined higher educational institutions in the effort to increase adult access to educational opportunities and guidance to ensure success. Minnesota stands to be a leader in the process.

Laura Gilbert, Ph.D., Back to School for Grownups; serving the adult learner community through coaching, consulting and conversation.