The Role of For-Profit Colleges in Increasing Postsecondary Completions

Abstract

DOI 10.1515/cjpp-2012-0010 Calif. J. Politics Policy 2012; 4(2): 140–160 Research Article Su Jin Jez* The Role of For-Profit Colleges in Increasing Postsecondary Completions Abstract: For-profit institutions of higher education have been in the hot seat for their recruiting practices and questions of quality have reached a crescendo. Still, a large number of students are attending these colleges. For-profits enroll a more diverse student population than any other higher education sector in California, including the community colleges, and about half of their students receive Pell Grants – a smaller proportion than non-profits, and a number similar to the Uni- versity of California system. Not only are many students attending for-profits, but a large number of them are graduating from these institutions. I found that in 2010, more than 20% of the long-term certificates, associates and bachelor’s degrees were awarded by a for-profit institution. These certificates and degrees focus on career-related fields, such as health sciences, and few are in the tra- ditional liberal arts, such as the humanities, math, or social sciences. As state- level policy conversations in higher education focus on outcomes and increasing educational attainment rates, they must include for-profit institutions in strategic planning. While there may be much to be critical of regarding for-profits, they still educate a huge number of students, and these numbers are only growing. Keywords: For-Profit Colleges; higher education policy; state-level policy *Corresponding author: Su Jin Jez, Department of Public Policy & Administration, California State University, Sacramento, CA, USA, e-mail: jez@csus.edu 1 Introduction President Barack Obama has called for the USA to have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world by 2020 (Obama 2009). To achieve this goal, about 60% of young Americans would need a college degree (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development 2010). Thirty-eight percent of young Californians have a postsecondary degree (“American Community Survey Public Use Microdata Sample” 2009), and if current trends continue, this figure would reach 40% by