A new report has found that although earnings for community college graduates varied, there are strong differentials for certificate or degree holders in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields.
Black and Hispanic students who earned their associate degree received a higher benefit than their White and Asian peers, as well as higher earnings, but all groups benefited greatly from a degree or certificate completion.
Women who earn a community college certificate or degree earn between 15 and 25 percent more than high school graduates, and men who enroll right away and complete a credit-bearing certificate or an associate degree receive a 10 to 15 percent earnings boost.
“We often talk of the payoff of higher education in terms of lifetime earnings, but these data show the impact is more immediate – underscoring the importance of supporting community college access and completion–particularly after the disruption caused by the pandemic,” said Alicia Sasser Modestino of the Dukakis Center at Northeastern University, co-author of the study, Pathways to Economic Mobility: Identifying the Labor Market Value of Community College in Massachusetts.
Among students who enroll right away, women who complete an associate degree are 18 percentage points more likely to be employed than terminal high school graduates.
For students who delayed their entry into community college by up to five years but completed their degree or certificate, findings were also generally positive.
However, while women appeared to benefit by just attending community college, men who attended but did not complete a certificate or degree saw no real wage benefit.
“The policy implications of this report are clear – we need to strengthen our policies that support equity in access and accelerate completion at community colleges,” said Keith Mahoney, vice president of communications and public affairs at the Boston Foundation. “That equity, though, must reach beyond the classroom to include issues like affordability, access to coaching and supports, as well as internships and career explorations that give students a stronger base from which to enter the job market.”
The research found that employment and earnings benefits of obtaining an associate degree for under-represented students of color and low-income students were equivalent to, or even exceed, those benefits experienced by their White and higher-income peers.
“The data clearly highlight the measurable impact that community college completion can have for the futures of all students,” said Ben Forman, research director at MassINC, who co-authored the report. “But there are definite groups – when one looks at fields of study or race and gender, where the power of a degree or certificate can put students on a life-changing trajectory.”
“These data demonstrate remarkable outcomes for thousands of people who attend and complete community college, but they also demonstrate the urgency we should feel to close the opportunity gap that keeps students of color from finishing community college at the same rates as their white peers,” added Antoniya Marinova, assistant director of education to career programs at the Boston Foundation.
Marinova noted data in the report that while Black and Latino students are roughly twice as likely to attend community college, they are much less likely to complete a degree or certificate – a pattern especially visible among male students.
“Our history of work with Success Boston has shown both that devastating gap and some ways in which we can close it – providing more equitable rewards in an economy that places sharp emphasis on earning a degree.”
Click here to read the full report.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has been tasked with…
Brown and Caldwell, a leading environmental engineering and construction firm,…
Humboldt State University, one of four campuses within the California…
