ASAP consistently increased students’ likelihood of enrolling at CUNY colleges, especiallyduring the first two years of the program. During the main sessions of the second throughsixth semesters, ASAP’s effects on enrollment rates were 9.6, 7.7, 9.5, 6.6, and 4.6 percentagepoints, respectively. 5ASAP’s effects on intersession enrollment are even more dramatic, peaking at 25.2 percentagepoints during the second semester. 6 The large effects on intersession enrollment duringthe first two years may reflect several factors: (1) control group students enrolled at low rates,leaving a large margin for improvement; (2) ASAP requires full-time enrollment (attempting 12credits or more) and the intersession credits count toward full-time enrollment; and (3) ASAPadvisers guided students to enroll during intersessions. The magnitude of the effects in the thirdyear (during both main sessions and intersessions) is lower than in previous years. This decreasepartially reflects the fact that by that time, many more ASAP students had earned an associate’sdegree compared with their control group counterparts (described later in detail).Compared with the usual college services, ASAP clearly improves students’ likelihoodof continuing to enroll in college. The program group’s enrollment rates during the first fewmain sessions reflect a high rate of retention. Between the first and second semesters, theprogram group’s enrollment rate dropped only 6.2 percentage points. Between the second andthird semesters, the drop in the enrollment rate was 14.5 percentage points, a much more typicaldecrease. While ASAP had significant positive effects on persistence, developing additionalstrategies to retain students at the end of their first year could be one place to focus efforts toimprove enrollment rates.Recall that to enter the MDRC evaluation, students had to be willing to enroll full time. 7Part-time attendance is often described as a risk factor for community college students and, asnoted in Chapter 1, is negatively associated with academic success. Appendix Table C.1 showsfull-time enrollment at any CUNY college during the six semesters of follow-up. From the veryfirst study semester, students offered the opportunity to participate in ASAP were more likely toenroll full time, compared with their control group counterparts (on average 12 percentagepoints more likely across the six semesters of follow-up).5 For the final estimate of 4.6 percentage points, p > 0.10.6 For the final two intersessions, the effect estimates p > 0.10.7 Throughout this chapter, full-time enrollment is defined as attempting 12 credits or more in a semester.As explained in Box 4.1, a semester includes both the main session and intersession. Full-time enrollmentstatus is based on total credits attempted in both the main session and intersession. For the purposes of ASAP,Kingsborough and LaGuardia Community Colleges define full time in the way it is presented in this chapter;Borough of Manhattan Community College, however, does not include the summer or winter intersessionswhen determining full-time status.54
This study found that ASAP’s combination of requirements and supports successfullyincreased full-time enrollment rates. The study, however, was not designed to disentangle whichcomponent(s) of ASAP caused this effect. The effect on full-time enrollment is likely thecollective result of requiring students to enroll full time to remain in a desirable program,providing multiple sets of supports (financial, advising, and so forth) to enable students to meetthis requirement, and encouraging students to enroll in intersessions. This result demonstratesthat some students who currently enroll part time, if given the right set of requirements, incentives,and supports, would enroll full time.Overall, during the first three years after students entered the study, which also representsthe duration of ASAP services, the program had substantial effects on persistence incollege. 8Credits EarnedTable 4.2 depicts average credits earned at CUNY colleges during the first three yearsafter students were randomly assigned. The first panel focuses on total credits earned, whichincludes both developmental (or remedial) and college-level credits. 9 The second panel includesdevelopmental credits only. The third panel highlights college-level credits only. Credits areshown marginally by session and semester, as well as cumulatively at the end of three full years.Similar results are provided with additional details in Appendix Tables C.2 (credits attempted)and C.3 (credits earned). 10 Figure 4.2 displays total cumulative credits earned by session, andAppendix Tables C.4 (credits attempted) and C.5 (credits earned) provide semester-by-semesterresults for cumulative credits in detail.8 Appendix Table C.1 displays enrollment rates at any CUNY college, as presented in Figure 4.1, withgreater detail. Appendix Table C.1 also presents enrollment rates at any college covered by the NationalStudent Clearinghouse (NSC), which includes data on a comprehensive set of colleges throughout the UnitedStates. The NSC data are important to consider since some students transfer to non-CUNY colleges. For theirpart, the CUNY data allow for a useful breakdown of enrollment by intersessions and for calculation of fulltimeattendance, unlike the NSC data. Examining both data sources provides a comprehensive picture ofenrollment patterns for the study sample. As expected, where comparable, enrollment at any NSC college ishigher than enrollment at CUNY colleges alone — differences are quite small during the first four semesters.Where comparable, ASAP’s estimated effects on enrollment at any college are very similar to those at CUNYcolleges alone. (The greatest difference is 1.1 percentage points.) These data provide useful context wheninterpreting the credit accumulation results presented in the following section, which only includes creditsearned at CUNY colleges.9 Developmental credits are credits associated with developmental reading, writing, and math courses;English as a Second Language classes; and a small number of other non-college-level courses. CUNY refers tothese credits as “equated credits.” These credits do not count towards a degree, but they do count towardsfinancial aid.10 These tables provide additional information recommended by The What Works Clearinghouse ReportingGuide for Study Authors.55
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DOUBLINGGRADUATIONRATESThree-Year E
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The ASAP evaluation is supported by
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ContentsOverviewList of ExhibitsPre
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List of ExhibitsTableES.1 Key Diffe
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public transportation. By the end o
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Chapter 1IntroductionPostsecondary
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Evaluation of Accelerated Study in
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ReferencesAdelman, Clifford. 2005.
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Rutschow, Elizabeth Zachry, and Emi
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About MDRCMDRC is a nonprofit, nonp