AIR, in collaboration with Student Veterans of America, will examine veterans’ experiences with, and perceptions of, having their learning recognized by a postsecondary institution as they try to obtain a postsecondary credential. The goals of the project are to develop a better understanding of the challenges veterans face in receiving recognition of their learning by postsecondary institutions, and to inform and support institutions’ efforts to address those challenges. Click here for more information.

The Regional Educational Laboratory Southwest, operated by AIR, in collaboration with the Southwest College and Career Readiness Research Partnership, studied the ability of these indicators to predict postsecondary readiness (ACT score of 19 or above) and success (college enrollment and persistence within eight years of beginning grade 6) for Arkansas students who entered grade 6 in 2008/09 or 2009/10. The study’s findings can help state and local education agencies, both in Arkansas and across the nation, identify and support middle and high school students who are on and off track for attaining postsecondary readiness and success.

This infographic examines five well-known, publicly available national college rankings systems chosen because of their widespread use and/or their focus on student outcomes.

This report identifies type of high school enrollment (e.g., traditional public schools, charter schools, and private voucher schools) for Indiana students enrolled in grade 9 in 2010/11–2013/14 and examines their performance on indicators of college and career readiness and early college success.

AIR conducted a randomized controlled trial to determine the effects of Early College High Schools, which allow students to take a mixture of high school and college-level courses. The study examined the impacts of Early College High Schools on college enrollment and degree completion up to 6 years after expected high school graduation, in addition to a cost-benefit analysis of Early College High Schools. The goals of the study were to estimate the longer-term impacts of Early College High Schools on student postsecondary outcomes and compare the financial costs and benefits of these schools.

This blog post uses data from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) to present key statistics on distance education course offerings and enrollments at U.S. colleges.

Click each state name to explore CTE-related projects in Texas, Massachusetts, and Washington.

Learn about our ongoing study examining learning environments that enable undergraduate students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) to attain doctoral degrees in science and engineering. 

Social network analysis is a relationship-mapping research method that allows researchers to find and analyze patterns within a group.

This website, created by AIR researchers, provides useful information to data reporters and to data users on the data elements related to distance education collected in IPEDS.

This call to action discusses the disproportionate impact from COVID-19 on Black, Latinx and Indigenous students, who have been hardest hit by practices and policies that result in credit loss when they transfer.

This journal article discusses findings from a study in which researchers developed a machine learning classifier to predict nontraditional student dropout.

In this video, our research teams discuss the benefits of participating in the College Completion Network, with a focus on how collaborating with fellow researchers and higher education practitioners is helping the teams provide high-quality, actionable evidence that can help move the dial on college completion.

AIR’s Dr. Rachel Dinkes joined panelists from academia, policymaking, and the U.S. higher education system to discuss who should foot the bill as postsecondary education expands in the United States.

This blog post uses newly released provisional data from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System’s (IPEDS) Fall Enrollment (EF) survey to provide an updated look at whether beginning college students are attending school in their home state or heading elsewhere.

In this video we introduce the Center for Applied Research in Postsecondary Education (CARPE) at the American Institutes for Research. CARPE is committed to improving postsecondary education for all students by generating rigorous evidence and connecting research and practice.

AIR is analyzing 20 years of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 panel using an individual fixed-effects regression strategy. The purpose of the analysis is to estimate the returns to non-credit-bearing credential and licensure pathways compared with credit-bearing credential and associate degree programs that are unrelated to persistent differences in the respondents’ characteristics (e.g., ability). Findings show that credit-bearing credentials yield an approximately equal likelihood to be employed as noncredit-bearing credentials, but significantly improved earnings of about $7,000 a year.