Impact of Free Community College: Evidence From Chicago

• In Event: Shaping Student Success in Higher Education: Family Engagement, Instructor Quality, Financial Aid, and Institutional Constraints

Abstract

While free community college offers a potentially lower-cost pathway through college, limiting financial aid exclusively to community colleges might have unintended consequences if it diverts students from attending better-resourced 4-year universities. This study examines the impact of the Star Scholarship, a merit-based program in Chicago offering free community college tuition for high school graduates with at least a 3.0 GPA. Using a regression discontinuity design, we find that free community college does not affect whether higher achieving students enroll in college but does affect where they attend college, with a noticeable shift from students starting at 4-year universities to starting at community colleges. Despite this initial diversion, we find no evidence that free community college reduces the probability that a student will eventually enroll in and complete a bachelor’s degree at a 4-year university. In fact, we observe positive but imprecise effects on both overall degree completion and 4-year degree completion six years after high school. At the same time, we see a 1.7 percentage point increase in the probability that a student earns a degree from a 2-year institution. Taken together, these findings suggest that, in our context, free community college increases overall degree attainment, without leading students to substitute 2-year degrees for 4-year degrees. Students who are likely to be from immigrant families have the greatest probability of taking up the scholarship. This finding highlights a significant gap in support for immigrant students pursuing higher education. This study contributes to our broader understanding of how financial aid design affects economic opportunity for different groups of students, providing valuable insights for policymakers aiming to increase college access and success.

Authors

• Emileigh Harrison, The University of Texas at Austin
  Presenting Author

• Kelly Hallberg, University of Chicago
  Non-Presenting Co-Author