The Open Admissions Model: An Example from the United States

doi:10.1017/9781108559607.004

Chapter 4 - The Open Admissions Model: An Example from the United States

from Part I - Global Challenges and Common Admissions Models

Published online by Cambridge University Press: 09 January 2020

Kevin M. Williams and

Cathy Wendler

Edited by

María Elena Oliveri and

Cathy Wendler

Show author details

María Elena Oliveri: Affiliation:
Educational Testing Service, Princeton, New Jersey
Cathy Wendler: Affiliation:
Educational Testing Service, Princeton, New Jersey

Book contents

Get access

Summary

Open admission approaches offer a mechanism to reduce barriers for students whose backgrounds are disadvantaged or underprivileged. Institutions with open admissions provide higher education opportunities to many types of students including those who need or wish to reduce the costs of a more selective four-year institution, those who are seeking vocational or technical education, those who may need further academic preparation, and those who do not qualify for admissions to other, more competitive institutions. This chapter discusses the issues surrounding the open admissions model, including the benefits and challenges of implementing such a model. Avenues for future research and applications of an open admissions model are also discussed.

Keywords

open admissions higher education admissions underserved students united states fairness

Information

Type: Chapter
Information: Higher Education Admissions Practices
An International Perspective
, pp. 51 - 75
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108559607.004 [Opens in a new window]
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2020

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Book purchase

Temporarily unavailable

References

Aguinis, H., & Kraiger, K. (2009). Benefits of training and development for individuals and teams, organizations, and society. Annual Review of Psychology, 60, 451–474. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.60.110707.163505.Google Scholar

American Association of Community Colleges. (2018). Fast facts. Washington, DC: AACC. Retrieved from www.aacc.nche.edu/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/2018-Fast-Facts.pdf.Google Scholar

American Association of Community Colleges. (1998). (Commission on the Future of the Community Colleges). Building communities: A vision for a new century. Washington, DC: AACC.Google Scholar

Anayah, B., & Kuk, L. (2015). The growth of international student enrollment at community colleges and implications. Community College Journal of Research and Practice, 39, 1099–1110. https://doi.org/10.1080/10668926.2014.934409.Google Scholar

Belfield, C., & Bailey, T. (2017). The labor market returns to sub-baccalaureate college: A review. New York, NY: Center for Analysis of Postsecondary Education and Employment.Google Scholar

Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2018). Employment projections. Retrieved from www.bls.gov/emp/tables.htm.Google Scholar

Camara, W. J., & Westrick, P. (2017). USA: Perspectives on admissions and admissions testing. Iowa City, IA: ACT.Google Scholar

Cappelli, P. (2012). Why good people can’t get jobs: The skills gap and what companies can do about it. Philadelphia, PA: Wharton Digital Press.Google Scholar

Carnevale, A. P., Cheah, B., & Strohl, J. (2011). Hard times, unemployment, majors and earnings: Not all college degrees are created equal. Washington, DC: Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforces.Google Scholar

Carnevale, A. P., Rose, S. J., & Cheah, B. (2011). The college payoff: Education, occupations, lifetime earnings. Washington, DC: Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce.Google Scholar

Clancy, P., & Goastellec, G. (2007). Exploring access and equity in higher education: Policy and performance in a comparative perspective. Higher Education Quarterly, 61, 136–154. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2273.2007.00343.x.Google Scholar

Clinedinst, M. E., Koranteng, A., & Nicola, T. (2016). 2015 State of college admissions. Washington, DC: National Association of Collegiate Admissions Counselors.Google Scholar

Doran, E. (2014). [Review of the book Community colleges and the access effect: Why open admissions suppresses achievement, by J. L. Scherer & M. L. Anson]. Community College Enterprise, 20, 85–87.Google Scholar

Drury, R. L. (2003). Community colleges in America: A historical perspective. Inquiry, 8(1).Google Scholar

European Union. (2018). The EU in support of the Bologna process. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union.Google Scholar

Fullinwider, R. K. (1999). Open admissions and remedial education at CUNY. Philosophy & Public Policy Quarterly. 19(1), 7–13.Google Scholar

Ginder, S. A., Kelly-Reid, J. E., & Mann, F. B. (2018). 2017–18 Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) methodology report (NCES 2018-195). Washington, DC: US Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics.Google Scholar

Guri-Rosenblit, S. (2010). Access and equity in higher education: Historical and cultural contexts. In Eggins, H. (Ed.). Access and equity: Comparative perspectives, 9–34. Rotterdam: Sense Publishers.Google Scholar

Hart, D., Mele-McCarthy, J., Pasternack, R. H., Zimbrich, K., & Parker, D. R. (2004). Community college: A pathway to success for youth with learning, cognitive, and intellectual disabilities in secondary settings. Education and Training in Developmental Disabilities, 39, 54–66.Google Scholar

Heckman, J. J., & Kautz, T. (2012). Hard evidence on soft skills. Labour Economics, 19, 451–464. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.labeco.2012.05.014.Google Scholar

Hussar, W. J., & Bailey, T. M. (2017). Projections of education statistics to 2025 (NCES 2017-019). Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics, US Department of Education.Google Scholar

Ingram, W. G., & Morrissey, S. E. (2009). Ethical dimensions of the open door admissions policy. New Directions for Community Colleges, 148, 31–38. https://doi.org/10.1002/cc.384.CrossRef Google Scholar

Jenkins, D., & Boswell, K. (2002). State policies on community college remedial education: Findings from a national survey. Denver, CO: Center for Community College Policy, Education Commission of the States.Google Scholar

Karp, M. M. (2016). A holistic conception of nonacademic support: How four mechanisms combine to encourage positive student outcomes in the community college. New Directions for Community College, 2016 (175), 33–44. https://doi.org/10.1002/cc.20210.Google Scholar

Klieger, D., Ezzo, C., Bochenek, J., & Cline, F. (2015). The predictive validity of noncognitive skills for graduate and professional student success: Some initial findings. Paper presented at the Validity and Fairness Issues in Assessing Higher Education Students Symposium, Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Chicago, IL.Google Scholar

Klor de Alva, J., & Schneider, M. (2013). What’s the value of an associate’s degree? The return on investment for graduates and taxpayers. Washington, DC: Nexus Research and Policy Center and American Institutes for Research. Retrieved from www.air.org/sites/default/files/Value_of_an_Associate_Degree_10.13.pdf.Google Scholar

Kopko, E. M., & Crosta, P. M. (2016). Should community college students earn an associate degree before transferring to a 4-year institution? Research in Higher Education, 57, 190–222. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11162–015-9383.Google Scholar

Levy, D. (2015). For-profit versus nonprofit private higher education. International Higher Education, 54, 12–13.Google Scholar

Lorenzo, A. L. (1993). The mission and functions of the community college: An overview. In IIIBaker, G. A. (Ed.). A Handbook on community college in America. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.Google Scholar

Ma, J., & Baum, S. (2016). Trends in community colleges: Enrollment, prices, student debt, and completion. New York, NY: The College Board.Google Scholar

McFarland, J., Hussar, B., de Brey, C., Snyder, T., Wang, X., Wilkinson-Flicker, S., & Hinz, S. (2017). The condition of education 2017 (NCES 2017-144). Washington, DC: US Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved from https://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2017144.Google Scholar

Martin-Raugh, M. P., Williams, K. M., & Lentini, J. E. (2020). The malleability of workplace-relevant noncognitive constructs: Empirical evidence from 92 meta-analyses and reviews. Manuscript in preparation.Google Scholar

Melby-Lervåg, M., Redick, T. S., & Hulme, C. (2016). Working memory training does not improve performance on measures of intelligence or other measures of “far transfer”: Evidence from a meta-analytic review. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 11, 512–534. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691616635612.Google Scholar

Morley, K. M. (2003). Fitting in by race/ethnicity: The social and academic integration of diverse students at a large predominantly white university. Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory & Practice. 5, 147–174. https://doi.org/10.2190/K1KF-RTLW-1DPW-T4CC.Google Scholar

Morse, R., Brooks, E., & Mason, M. (2017). How U.S. News Calculated the 2019 Best Colleges Rankings. U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved from www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/articles/how-us-news-calculated-the-rankings.Google Scholar

Myles, N. N. (2017). The face of an intergenerational community in higher education. Journal of Research, Assessment, and Practice in Higher Education, 2, 42–46.Google Scholar

Nagaoka, J., Roderick, M., & Coca, V. (2008). Barriers to college attainment: Lessons from Chicago. Washington, DC: The Center for American Progress.Google Scholar

National Center for Education Statistics. (2018). Beginning college students in 2011–12, followed through 2014 (BPS2014). Retrieved from https://nces.ed.gov/datalab/powerstats/pdf/bps2014_subject.pdf.Google Scholar

National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. (2017a). Current term enrollment – Fall 2017. Retrieved from https://nscresearchcenter.org/current-term-enrollment-estimates-fall-2017/.Google Scholar

National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. (2017b). The role of community colleges in postsecondary success: Community colleges outcomes report. Retrieved from https://studentclearinghouse.info/onestop/wp-content/uploads/Comm-Colleges-Outcomes-Report.pdf.Google Scholar

National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. (2017c). Snapshot report: The role of community colleges in postsecondary success. Retrieved from https://nscresearchcenter.org/snapshotreport-from-community-college-to-graduate-and-professional-degrees30/.Google Scholar

Nelson, B., Froehner, M., & Gault, B. (2013). College students with children are common and face many challenges in completing higher education (Briefing Paper IWPR# C404). Washington, DC: Institute for Women’s Policy Research.Google Scholar

New York Times. (1976, December 4). Retreat from learning. New York Times. Retrieved from www.nytimes.com/1976/12/04/archives/retreat-from-learning.html.Google Scholar

Obama, B. H. (2009). State of the union address. Presented to the United States Congress, Washington, DC. Retrieved from http://stateoftheunionaddress.org/2009-barack-obama.Google Scholar

Perfetto, G., Escandón, M., Graff, S., Rigol, G. W., & Schmidt, A. E. (1999). Towards a taxonomy of the admission decision-making process. New York, NY: College Entrance Examination Board.Google Scholar

Roberts, B. W., Lejuez, C., Krueger, R. F., Richards, J. M., & Hill, P. L. (2014). What is conscientiousness and how can it be assessed? Developmental Psychology, 50, 1315–1330. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0031109.Google Scholar

Scherer, J. L., & Anson, M. L. (2014). Community colleges and the access effect: Why open admissions suppresses achievement. New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137331007.Google Scholar

Schmidt, F. L., & Hunter, J. E. (1998). The validity and utility of selection methods in personnel psychology: Practical and theoretical implications of 85 years of research findings. Psychological Bulletin, 124, 262–274. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.124.2.262.Google Scholar

Schwager, I. T. L., Hülsheger, U. R., Lang, J. W. B., Bridgeman, B., Klieger, D. M., & Wendler, C. (2014). Supervisor ratings of students’ academic potential as predictors of citizenship and counterproductive behavior. Learning and Individual Differences, 35, 62–69. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2014.07.005.Google Scholar

Scott-Clayton, J. (2012). Do high-stakes placement exams predict college success? New York, NY: Columbia University, Teachers College, Community College Research Center.Google Scholar

Scott-Clayton, J., & Stacey, G. W. (2015). Improving the accuracy of remedial placement. New York, NY: Columbia University, Teachers College, Community College Research Center.Google Scholar

Shannon, H. D., & Smith, R. C. (2006). A case for the community college’s open access mission. New Directions for Community Colleges, 2006 (136), 15–21. https://doi.org/10.1002/cc.255.Google Scholar

Shapiro, D., Dundar, A., Huie, F., Wakhungu, P. K., Yuan, X., Nathan, A., & Hwang, Y. (2017). Tracking transfer: Measures of effectiveness in helping community college students to complete bachelor’s degrees (National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, Signature Report No. 13). Retrieved from https://nscresearchcenter.org/wp-content/uploads/SignatureReport13.pdf.Google Scholar

Shaw, E. J. (2018). The core case for testing: The state of our research knowledge. In Buckley, J., Letukas, L., & Wildavsky, B. (Eds.). Measuring success: Testing, grades, and the future of college admissions (pp. 40–63). Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press.Google Scholar

Student Right-to-Know Act (1990), Pub. L. No. 101-542, Title I, §101, 104 Stat. 2381.Google Scholar

US Census Bureau. (2017a). CPS historical time series tables: Table A-2. Percent of people 25 years and over who have completed high school or college, by race, Hispanic origin, and sex: Selected years 1940 to 2017. Retrieved from www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/educational-attainment/cps-historical-time-series.html.Google Scholar

US Census Bureau. (2017b). CPS historical time series tables on school enrollment: Table A-2. Percentage of the population 3 years old and over enrolled in school, by age, sex, race, and Hispanic origin: October 1947 to 2016. Retrieved from www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/school-enrollment/cps-historical-time-series.html.Google Scholar

US Department of Education. (2012). United States education dashboard. Retrieved from http://dashboard.ed.gov/about.aspx.Google Scholar

Accessibility standard: Unknown

Why this information is here

This section outlines the accessibility features of this content - including support for screen readers, full keyboard navigation and high-contrast display options. This may not be relevant for you.

Accessibility Information

Accessibility compliance for the HTML of this chapter is currently unknown and may be updated in the future.