Clearing Up Transfer Admissions Standards: The Impact on Access and Outcomes

• In Event: Key Decision Makers for Student Success

Abstract

This paper estimates the impact of providing transfer admissions standards and certainty on college choices, graduation, and student debt using administrative data from Virginia. Relying on variation in students’ admissions eligibility and graduation timing, I find that four-year colleges’ published admissions standards and admissions guarantee induces high-GPA community college graduates to shift from regional and private colleges to flagship colleges, increase bachelor’s degree attainment at flagships, and decrease debt load. Results were larger for students who were less geographically constrained and had historically lower rates of transfer, suggesting that clear information about guaranteed payoffs can improve access.

Author

• Lena Shi, Harvard University