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Some Promises are Worth More than Others: How “Free Community College” Programs impact Postsecondary Participation, Destinations, and Degree Completion

David B. Monaghan,
Elizabeth A. Hawke

“Free college” programs are widespread in American higher education. They are discussed as addressing college access, affordability, inequality, and skills shortages. Many are last-dollar tuition guarantees restricted to use at single community colleges. Using student-level data spanning the transition to college, we investigate how two similar local community college tuition guarantees in Pennsylvania affected college-going outcomes. The Morgan Success Scholarship has large impacts on community college attendance and associate degree attainment. The program diverts students away from four-year colleges, though much of this effect is temporary. Meanwhile, we find little evidence that the Community College of Philadelphia’s 50th Anniversary Scholars program has any impact on college-going behavior. We suggest reasons for divergent findings and offer suggestions for practice.

Keywords
Financial aid, free college, promise program, college access, college completion
Education level
Post-secondary education
Topics
Pathways to and Through Postsecondary
Tags
College readiness,
Higher education
Download 07/2024
Document Object Identifier (DOI)
10.26300/m0c7-5q56
EdWorkingPaper suggested citation:
Monaghan, David B., and Elizabeth A. Hawke. (). Some Promises are Worth More than Others: How “Free Community College” Programs impact Postsecondary Participation, Destinations, and Degree Completion. (EdWorkingPaper: -1002). Retrieved from Annenberg Institute at Brown University: https://doi.org/10.26300/m0c7-5q56

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