Should College be “Free”? Evidence on Free College, Early Commitment, and Merit Aid from an Eight-Year Randomized Trial
American Economic Journal: Economic Policy · 2025 · Douglas N. Harris、Jonathan Mills
中文摘要
我们利用一项为期八年的随机试验，考察大学财政资助的效应。该试验向九年级学生提供12,000美元的择优助学金。该计划旨在使社区学院学费/杂费全免，并大幅降低四年制大学的就读成本。在高中阶段，获得该助学金资格提高了学生对大学入学的预期，以及低成本的大学入学准备投入，但未提高高成本的准备投入。该计划可能提高了两年制学院的毕业率，但并未影响总体大学入学、毕业、就业、监禁或青少年怀孕情况。进一步分析有助于解释这些微弱效应，以及既有研究之间结果的差异。(JEL I22, I23, I26, I28, J24)
Abstract
We provide evidence on the effects of college financial aid from an eight-year randomized trial offering ninth graders a $12,000 merit-based grant. The program was designed to be free of tuition/fees at community colleges and substantially lower the cost of four-year colleges. During high school, eligibility for the grant increased students’ expectations of college attendance and low-cost college preparation effort, but not higher-cost effort. The program may have increased graduation from two-year colleges but did not affect overall college entry, graduation, employment, incarceration, or teen pregnancy. Additional analysis helps explain these modest effects and variation in results across prior studies. (JEL I22, I23, I26, I28, J24)