Showing papers by "Sarah Turner published in 2015"

What High-Achieving Low-Income Students Know About College †

Abstract: Previous work demonstrates that low-income higher achievers fail to apply to selective colleges despite their being admitted at high rates and receiving financial aid so generous that they pay less than at non-selective schools. The Expanding College Opportunities project, a randomized controlled trial, provides individualized information about colleges' net prices, resources, curricula, students, and outcomes. Our prior study shows that the intervention raises students' applications to, admissions at, enrollment, and progress at selective colleges. Here we use survey data to show that it actually changes students' knowledge and decision-making. We highlight topics on which they are misinformed.

Finishing Degrees and Finding Jobs: U.S. Higher Education and the Flow of Foreign IT Workers

Abstract: Executive SummaryThe rising importance of information technology (IT) occupations in the US economy has been accompanied by an expansion in the representation of high-skill, foreign-born IT workers. To illustrate, the share of the foreign born in IT occupations increased from about 15.5% to about 31.5% between 1993 and 2010, with this increased representation particularly marked among those younger than 45. This analysis focuses on understanding the role that US higher education and immigration policy plays in this transformation. A degree from a US college/university is an important pathway to participation in the US IT labor market, and the foreign born who obtain US degree credentials are particularly likely to remain in the United States. Many workers from abroad, including countries like India and China where wages in IT fields lag those in the United States, receive a substantial return to finding employment in the United States, even as temporary work visa policies may limit their entry. Limits on ...

Introduction: US High-Skilled Immigration in the Global Economy

Abstract: Immigrants account for approximately a quarter of US science and engineering ðS&EÞworkers with bachelor’s educations, and yet there have been at most a few dozen detailed academic studies that examine the link of immigration and innovation in the United States. High-skilled immigrants represent an increasing share of the US workforce, particularly in science and engineering S&E fields. Foreign-born individuals account for nearly 28% of doctorate-level workers in the United States and more than 45% of those with PhDs employed in S&E fields. The potential impact of high-skilled immigration on the US economy extends well beyond traditional questions of the impact on wages and employment for the immigrants and natives. The expansion of the pool of high-skilled workers is often accompanied by innovations as measured by patents and other forms of scientific output, which suggests the potential for high-skilled immigration to contribute to net human capital externalities. Indeed, foreign-born scientists account for a disproportionate number of major scientific contributions ðStephan and Levin 2001Þ and about a quarter of US innovative outputs ðKerr 2013Þ. Still, the limited evidence regarding the economic and distributional consequences of highskilled immigration has become all the more apparent and worrisome given the policy focus on the issue. While the study of immigration and immigration policy has a long history, a disproportionate share of the research has focused on lower-skilled groups. There is also an established line of economics research on high-skilled labor markets motivated by the importance of scientific innovation for

What High-Achieving Low-Income Students Know About College

Abstract: Previous work (Hoxby and Avery 2014) shows that low-income higher achievers tend not to apply to selective colleges despite being extremely likely to be admitted with financial aid so generous that they would pay less than they do to attend the non-selective schools they usually attend. The Expanding College Opportunities project is a randomized controlled trial that provides such students with individualized information about the college application process and colleges' net prices. In other work (Hoxby and Turner 2013), we show that the informational intervention substantially raises students' probability of applying to, being admitted at, enrolling at, and progressing at selective colleges. In this study, we show that the intervention actually changes students' informedness on key topics such as the cost of college, the availability of the curricula and peers they seek, and the different types of colleges available to them. We highlight topics on which the control students, who experienced no intervention, are seriously misinformed.

What High-Achieving Low-Income Students Know About College

Abstract: Previous work (Hoxby and Avery 2014) shows that low-income higher achievers tend not to apply to selective colleges despite being extremely likely to be admitted with financial aid so generous that they would pay less than they do to attend the non-selective schools they usually attend. The Expanding College Opportunities project is a randomized controlled trial that provides such students with individualized information about the college application process and colleges' net prices. In other work (Hoxby and Turner 2013), we show that the informational intervention substantially raises students' probability of applying to, being admitted at, enrolling at, and progressing at selective colleges. In this study, we show that the intervention actually changes students' informedness on key topics such as the cost of college, the availability of the curricula and peers they seek, and the different types of colleges available to them. We highlight topics on which the control students, who experienced no intervention, are seriously misinformed.Institutional subscribers to the NBER working paper series, and residents of developing countries may download this paper without additional charge at www.nber.org.

The Productivity of Pell Grant Spending: Enrollment versus Attainment.

Abstract: If colleges and universities that attract large numbers of Pell-grant recipients are not equipping them with economically meaningful credentials, they are doing them more harm than good and not usi...