Evaluating South Korea’s introduction of an income contingent loan program, Research in Higher Education, 2021 (with Jeongeun Kim)
Denying loan access: The student-level consequences when community colleges opt out of the Stafford loan program, Economics of Education Review 2016
Journal Article CAPSEE Working Paper
Understand the determinants of debt burden among college graduates, Journal of Higher Education, 2014 (with Rong Chen)
Simplifying tax incentives and aid for college: Progress and Prospects, Tax Policy and the Economy, 2013 (with Sue Dynarski & Judith Scott-Clayton)
Journal Article NBER Working Paper
Student aid simplification: Looking back and looking ahead, National Tax Journal, 2012 (with Sue Dynarski)
Service-contingent financial aid: Exploring state loan forgiveness and conditional grant programs
Financial aid - A guide for community college leaders
FAFSA simplification guidebook (with Rachel Burns)
The FAFSA simplification act: Policy simulations and implications for state aid programs
Supplemental brief examining All Iowa Opportunities Scholarship
Supplemental brief examining Last Dollar Scholarship
A stumbling block on the road to college: How FAFSA verification hinders low-income students (with Meghan Oster & Steve DesJardins)
Impact of verification on Iowa FAFSA filers | Appendix
How Iowa and its citizens benefit from higher education
Revisiting FAFSA simplification: Expanding access to the IRS data retrieval tool (with Sue Dynarski)
Impact of academic probation for online students, 2018 (with Jeongeun Kim)
Abstract: With data from an institution with a large online enrollment, this study uses a regression discontinuity estimation strategy to examine how online students respond to being on academic probation. Similar to previous studies, this study found that probationary students are less likely to persist in the 2nd term of enrollment. For students who do return, there are improvements in their GPA. While this GPA improvement is attributed to students attempting less credits, in contrast to previous studies, we did not find any evidence that students are strategically manipulating their course taking behaviors. Rather, we found that institutional policy and academic advising encourage probationary students to remain on an academic track toward degree completion
Labor market returns to community college awards: Evidence from Michigan, 2015 (with Peter Bahr, Sue Dynarski, Brian Jacob, Dan Kreisman, Alfredo Sosa)
Abstract: We examine the relative labor market gains experienced by first-time college students who enrolled in five community colleges in Michigan in 2003 and 2004. We track credentials, credits, earnings, and employment for these students through 2011. We compare labor market outcomes of those who earned a credential (associate degree or certificate) to those who enrolled but did not earn a credential. The data sources consist of administrative records data from the colleges, Unemployment Insurance earnings data from the State of Michigan, and enrollment and graduation data from the National Student Clearinghouse. Our analytic sample consists of 20,581 students. We find that students who were awarded a long-term certificate (referred to as a “diploma” in some states, including North Carolina) earned $2,500 to $3,600 more per year than did those without a credential, with the larger returns concentrated among men. For associate degrees, the estimated returns were $9,400 for women and $5,600 for men. Women saw little gain when awarded a short-term certificate, while men gained $5,200 per year. Estimated returns were highest in health-related and technical fields.
Evaluation of an academic refresher course for students on academic probation (with Jeongeun Kim)
History of student loan policy from 1992 to 2022: An update to Hearn (1998)