Potholes on the Road to College: High School Effects in Shaping Urban Students' Participation in College Application, Four-year College Enrollment, and College Match

• Published in: Sociology of education 2011-07, Vol.84 (3), p.178-211
• Main Authors: Roderick, Melissa, Coca, Vanessa, Nagaoka, Jenny
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Academic degrees; Admissions; Application; Attendance; Attendance Patterns; College Applicants; College Attendance; College bound students; College choice; College Students; Colleges; Colleges & universities; Education reform; Educational attainment; Educational environment; Educational Research; Enrollment; Enrollments; Expectations; Financial Aid Applicants; High School Students; High Schools; Higher education; Initiatives; Low Income Groups; Older people; Participation; Predictor Variables; Public colleges; School Culture; School enrollment; School environment; Schools; Secondary school students; Secondary schools; Social Support Groups; Sociology; Sociology of education. Educational systems. Lifelong education; Standardized Tests; Student Financial Aid; Student Participation; Students; Teacher Expectations of Students; Teachers; Two year colleges; Urban Areas; Urban Schools
• ISSN: 0038-0407; 1939-8573
• DOI: 10.1177/0038040711411280

This article examines the extent to which indicators of the college-going climate of urban high schools are associated with students' application to, enrollment in, and choice among four-year colleges. The investigators examine two mechanisms by which high schools may shape college enrollment among low-income students in an urban school system: (1) by ensuring whether seniors who aspire to a four-year college degree take the steps to apply to and enroll in a four-year college, and (2) by influencing whether students enroll in colleges with selectivity levels at or above the kinds of colleges they are qualified to attend (a "college match"). We investigate different approaches to measuring college-going climate and develop new indicators. Findings suggest that qualifications and college aspirations will not necessarily translate into four-year college enrollment if urban high schools do not develop organizational norms and structures that guide students effectively through the college application process. Urban students who attend high schools where there is a pattern of four-year college-going, where teachers report high expectations and strong supports for college attendance, and where there is high participation in financial aid application are more likely to plan to attend, apply to, be accepted into, and enroll in a four-year college that matches their qualifications.