College Completion and Remedial Education: Do Institutional Characteristics Make a Difference?

• In Event: Educational Outcomes and the Role of Institutional Type

Abstract

This study compares postsecondary outcomes among students who do and do not enroll in remedial (sometimes called developmental) courses. The analysis examines the relationship between remediation and the odds of earning at least an Associate’s Degree, and explores how this relationship differs across colleges with different institutional characteristics. Multilevel logistic regression is used to analyze interview and transcript data from 10,270 students at 660 two- and four-year institutions from the Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study (2004/2009). Among students who first enroll at a four-year college, remediation exhibits a negative association with completing a degree, but this relationship is not found among two-year college students.

Authors

• Katherine A. Shields, Boston College

• Laura M. O'Dwyer, Boston College