Course availability can disrupt community college students' educational trajectories¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · causal r2 · q3
Currency · newest study 2021 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person · recheck by 2026: baselines and conditions change

Subclaims¶

q3 i? The study's results offer some evidence that course availability can disrupt community college students' educational trajectories. → Silvia Robles 2021

Evidence¶

Silvia Robles 2021¶

Silvia Robles, Max Gross, Robert W. Fairlie. (2021). The Effect of Course Shutouts on Community College Students: Evidence from Waitlist Cutoffs. Journal of Public Economics, vol. 199. https://www.mathematica.org/publications/the-effect-of-course-shutouts-on-community-college-students-evidence-from-waitlist-cutoffs doi:10.1016/j.jpubeco.2021.104409

q3 · i? · causal · r2

The authors' overall interpretation of the waitlist-cutoff findings: reduced course availability (shutouts) both increased the likelihood of taking zero courses and increased transfers to nearby two-year colleges, offering "some evidence" of trajectory disruption.

"These results offer some evidence that course availability can disrupt community college students’ educational trajectories."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• The evidence base for offering a college-ready curriculum is rated low, with mixed findings on rigorous curricula and positive findings on AP course taking — related
• Course shutouts increased transfer rates to nearby, potentially less-desirable two-year colleges — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• Community college students shut out of a course section via waitlist cutoffs were 22–28 percent more likely to take zero courses that term — a narrower finding that bears on this claim