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Higher Education Outcomes: Why We Need Student-level Data

The Christensen Institute Apr 3, 2018
This article is deemed a must-read by one or more of our expert collaborators.
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Higher Education Outcomes: Why We Need Student Level Data-giving compass
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Giving Compass’ Take:

• Higher education data is largely self-reported. The lack of student-level data means there is less transparency on how students are doing in programs or the trajectory of their education at institutions. 

• Why is it important for institutions to be transparent when sharing data outcomes? How can we build upon other resources to gauge outcomes of an institution?

• The same author, Alana Dunagan,  recently wrote another article relating to the higher education accreditation process which also relies on input rather than transparent outcomes. 


Transitioning to an individual student record would enable institutions and regulators to track whether innovations are effectively moving the needle on student outcomes. The lack of data also prevents higher education from moving forward: without good data on outcomes, stakeholders are locked into an input-based regulatory structure that constrains innovation.

Higher education data today is collected by colleges and universities themselves, is largely self-reported, and until very recently, included little data on the outcomes of part-time students, or of students who had transferred from another institution.  Collecting data at the institutional level also means that we know very little about which programs at each school are effectively equipping students with the skills they need to succeed—and which are not.

The best system would be one that counted all students, tracked their pathways through higher education (potentially across multiple institutions), gave us program level information, and information on outcomes after college. This is called a student-level data system. Unfortunately, Congress prohibited the creation of such a system in 2008.

Its fiercest critics come from two camps: privacy hawks and colleges themselves—private colleges in particular. Groups like the ACLU are mainly concerned about the potential for hacking and misuse of data. These are serious concerns.

On the other hand, a student-level data system has strong support from students. Groups like the Young Invincibles argue that more data is essential for students to make good decisions, and for colleges themselves to be able to innovate against student needs.

Some associations of colleges have come out in favor of a student-level data system. They argue a student-level data system is necessary to provide good data on student outcomes, and that the benefits far outweigh any downsides.

Read the full article about student-level data system in higher education by Alana Dunagan at The Christensen Institute. 

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If you are looking for more articles and resources for Higher Education, take a look at these Giving Compass selections related to impact giving and Higher Education.

  • This article is deemed a must-read by one or more of our expert collaborators.
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    How Philanthropy Can Create Public Systems Change

    Giving Compass' Take: • Rebecca Silbert and Debbie Mukamal highlight a story of how one philanthropic initiative transformed access to public higher education for incarcerated and formerly incarcerated Californians. • How can donors support change in California’s public colleges and universities so that they would serve incarcerated and formerly incarcerated students as part of their mission? • Learn more about successful prison partnerships for graduating incarcerated students.  Recently, publications ranging from Rolling Stone to The Wall Street Journal have been promoting the value of college in prison. Most incarcerated men and women will eventually return home, and they are as capable and deserving of college opportunities as anyone else. Plus, the fact that a college education can reduce recidivism and is cost-effective makes it politically attractive to both the Right and the Left. The critically acclaimed 2019 Ken Burns and Lynn Novick documentary, College Behind Bars, builds on the momentum with a compelling four-part series that follows a small group of incarcerated men and women as they earn their college degrees through the rigorous Bard Prison Initiative in New York State prisons. It is notable, then, that in less than five years California has transformed its public higher education system to serve incarcerated and formerly incarcerated men and women statewide. In 2019, California’s community colleges were teaching in-person classes in 34 of the state’s 35 prisons, serving almost 6,000 students each semester. Five years ago, no community colleges were teaching face-to-face in the state’s prisons. Incarcerated students seeking something other than correspondence courses had to await transfer to the only prison with an in-person college option, San Quentin, where the private Prison University Project served a few hundred students. Now, thousands of students in prison are enrolled in the same courses that the local community college offers, with identical standards, learning outcomes, and degrees. This represents astonishing growth in a short period of time. But these five years saw more than just an increase in prison programs. California engaged in a coordinated and intentional shift in public policy, which resulted in a new landscape for incarcerated and formerly incarcerated students. In this new landscape, California’s community colleges align their degree pathways so that incarcerated students who are moved from one prison to the next—an unfortunately common event—do not have to start from scratch in the new prison but can continue building toward a degree. For those who finish their associate’s degree, Cal State LA offers an in-person bachelor’s degree completion program at Lancaster prison, where the incarcerated students are fully matriculated as if they were on the college’s main campus. Read the full article about how philanthropy can create public systems change by Rebecca Silbert and Debbie Mukamal at Stanford Social Innovation Review.


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