The Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP) has launched a new research series, "Elevating Equitable Value: Investigating Economic Outcomes of Postsecondary Education." This seven-paper series aims to explore the economic benefits of a college degree and delve into critical issues related to equitable delivery of postsecondary value.
According to an IHEP press release, the new series will build upon insights gathered from the IHEP-managed Postsecondary Value Commission. The commission developed the Postsecondary Value Framework, a tool designed to measure how students are economically faring after college and by what margin.
The IHEP press release states that the upcoming series, scheduled for publication next year, will offer fresh insights to assist federal, state, and institutional decision-makers in adopting policies that enhance outcomes for college students. Researchers involved in the series will utilize data from IHEP’s Equitable Value Explorer, a diagnostic tool that assesses students' financial status post-college based on earnings data sourced from over 4,000 U.S. colleges and universities. They will also use other sources to investigate geographic variation in equitable postsecondary value among community colleges, economic returns from rural-serving colleges, and the economic value provided by Hispanic-serving institutions.
Commissioned research on equitable postsecondary value informs policy makers and can lead to improved post-college outcomes for diverse student populations. "The economic value of education after high school still depends heavily on student’s race, ethnicity, and income. That should not be the case," said Diane Cheng, IHEP Vice President of Research and Policy. She further added in the press release that "We want the insights from this series to inspire policy and practice innovations at the federal, state, and institutional levels that improve the equitable delivery of postsecondary value so all students, regardless of circumstance, go on to benefit from their postsecondary experience."
