Information and College Decisions: Evidence From the Texas GO Center Project

Abstract

We study GO Centers, a college information program that is run by student peers and provides information about all aspects of the college-going process to academically prepared students on the margin of attending college. We use the semi-random rollout of the program along with detailed panel data on the universe of Texas public school students to identify both short- and long-term program impacts. GO Centers led to a large increase in college application rates and a small increase in college enrollment rates, yet no increase in college completion rates. These results underscore the need to assess long-term outcomes in evaluations of educational interventions targeting college enrollment, and suggest that students at the margin of enrolling in college may require additional supports during college to successfully complete college degrees.