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Cited by 66Higher Education Research StudiesSchool Choice and PerformanceCareer Development and Diversity

Keeping College Options Open: A Field Experiment to Help all High School Seniors Through the College Application Process

Open access
Oreopoulos, Philip, Ford, Reuben·2019·Journal of Policy Analysis and Management
DOI 10.1002/pam.22115
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Abstract

Recent research suggests that the college application process itself prevents access. This paper reports results from a school‐based experiment in which application assistance is incorporated into the high school curriculum for all graduating seniors at low‐transition schools. Over three workshops, students were guided to pick programs of interest that they were eligible for, apply for real, and complete the financial aid application. The goal was to create a real college option for exiting students to make the transition easier and more salient. Among all graduating seniors, the program increased application rates by 15 percentage points, and college going rates by 5 percentage points. Among those not taking advanced‐level courses, college enrollment increased by 9 percentage points. The program generated significant effects for a wide range of heterogeneous groups, including both males and females, those from urban and rural schools, and those with above and below average grades. While more intensive than other tested approaches, in‐class application assistance may provide a more effective approach for bridging the gap towards higher education.

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1002/pam.22115

Cites

36 of 36 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Nothing to recompute.

Claims the paper makes

0 of 15 cited sources checked · 0 supported · 0 flagged

  • Findingown data

    A large majority of respondents said that graduating students found each workshop useful in helping them apply to a postsecondary program.

    “A large majority said that graduating students found each workshop useful in helping them 1) locate a postsecondary program to apply for, 2) apply to a postsecondary program, and 3) understand the associated costs and benefits of postsecondary.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim
  • Findingown data

    Most of the increase in the college application rate came from 2-year college applications.

    “LifeAfterHighSchool increased the college application rate for graduating seniors from 64 to 78 percent, with most of this increase coming from 2-year college applications.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • Findingnone given

    A relatively small fraction of students in Workshop 3 emailed a parent or recorded their financial aid application numbers on the website.

    “A relatively small fraction of students in Workshop 3 emailed a parent or recorded their financial aid application numbers on our website.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim
  • Findingown data

    LifeAfterHighSchool increased the college application rate for graduating seniors from 64 to 78 percent.

    “LifeAfterHighSchool increased the college application rate for graduating seniors from 64 to 78 percent, with most of this increase coming from 2-year college applications.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • Findingreasoning

    Subsequent enrollment effects were negligible.

    “However, subsequent enrollment effects were negligible.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim. 21
  • May combine two claims. 36

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Findingown data

    Almost half of account holders had time to try out the financial aid calculator after choosing their lists of programs of interest.

    “Almost 90 percent of account holders worked at the 'Where Would You Go?' exercise and entered previous or expected grades, and almost half had time to try out the financial aid calculator after choosing their lists of programs of interest.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Findingown data

    70 percent of coordinators said that Workshop 2 attendance rates were at least 80 percent.

    “In comparison, 80 and 70 percent of coordinators said that Workshop 1 and 2 attendances rates were at least 80 percent, respectively.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    The number of students who created an account is more than the total number of graduates that left high school that year, but far fewer than the total number of Grade 12s eligible to participate in the program.

    “While this is more than the total number of graduates that left high school that year, it is far fewer than the total number of Grade 12s who were eligible to participate in the program.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Findingown data

    Respondents said that graduating students had high levels of interest in the program.

    “Respondents said that graduating students had high levels of interest in the program.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing). May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    Around half of account holders applied to 2-year community colleges, and the other half applied to 4-year universities.

    “Around half applied to 2-year community colleges, and the other half applied to 4-year universities.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    The program had no noticeable impact on time to high school completion or graduation outcomes.

    “The program also had no noticeable impact on time to high school completion or graduation outcomes.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Findingown data

    A total of 11,356 students at the 43 program schools in 2011-12 had taken at least 4 years of high school.

    “Panel A shows that a total of 11,356 students at the 43 program schools in 2011-12 had taken at least 4 years of high school.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Findingown data

    A full three-quarters of LifeAfterHighSchool registered account holders used the site to pay for a college application.

    “Most importantly, a full three-quarters of LifeAfterHighSchool registered account holders used the site to pay for a college application (by entering their application number).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    Almost 90 percent of account holders worked at the 'Where Would You Go?' exercise and entered previous or expected grades.

    “Almost 90 percent of account holders worked at the 'Where Would You Go?' exercise and entered previous or expected grades, and almost half had time to try out the financial aid calculator after choosing their lists of programs of interest.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Findingown data

    7,436 students created an account on the LifeAfterHighSchool website.

    “Panel B shows that 7,436 students created an account on the LifeAfterHighSchool website.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Findingown data

    35 percent of school coordinators said that Workshop 3 attendance of graduating Grade 12 students was higher than 80 percent.

    “Overall, 35 percent of school coordinators said that Workshop 3 attendance of graduating Grade 12 students was higher than 80 percent, and 55 percent said that attendance levels were at least 50 percent.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Findingown data

    55 percent of school coordinators said that Workshop 3 attendance levels were at least 50 percent.

    “Overall, 35 percent of school coordinators said that Workshop 3 attendance of graduating Grade 12 students was higher than 80 percent, and 55 percent said that attendance levels were at least 50 percent.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Findingown data

    80 percent of coordinators said that Workshop 1 attendance rates were at least 80 percent.

    “In comparison, 80 and 70 percent of coordinators said that Workshop 1 and 2 attendances rates were at least 80 percent, respectively.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    In the control group, the fraction of Grade 12 students that graduated by the end of the school year was 62.9 percent, and 53.2 percent of all Grade 12s exited high school.

    “In the control group, the fraction of Grade 12 students that graduated by the end of the school year was 62.9 percent, and nearly all of them exited high school (53.2 percent of all Grade 12s).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    All of the enrollment effects came from increased enrollment at 2-year community colleges, with no increase in 4-year university enrollment.

    “As with the concentrated 2-year college application effects, all of the enrollment effects come from increased enrollment at 2year community colleges (with no increase in 4-year university enrollment).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    The Baseline + 'Mop-up' application increase was only a marginal improvement over the estimated effect without 'Mop-up', and the difference was not statistically significant.

    “when we provided facilitators to return to schools to offer additional assistance for students who had not applied during workshops, application rates increased 20.7 percentage points -only a marginal improvement to the estimated effect without 'Mop-up', and not a statistically significant difference.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing). May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    The baseline estimated effect in Table 7 was -0.036 with a standard error of 0.025.

    “The baseline estimated effect was -.036 with a standard error of 0.025.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    The program effects on graduation and leaving high school are both estimated with small confidence bands around zero.

    “The program effects on graduation and leaving high school are both estimated with small confidence bands around zero.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    In Phase I, both 2-year and 4-year college applications increased for students with university-level courses, by 3.7 and 6.7 percentage points respectively.

    “In Phase I, both 2-and 4-year college applications increased for students with university-level courses (by 3.7 and 6.7 percentage points respectively), but in Phase II, only applications to 4-year colleges increased significantly (by 14.2 percentage points).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    By gender, application and enrollment rates were much higher for females than males, by almost 20 percentage points in both cases.

    “By gender, it is interesting to note the much higher application and enrollment rates for females over males -almost a 20 percentage point difference in both cases.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    For nonuniversity track students, more students applied due to exposure to the Phase II over Phase I program, but some of these additional applicants were rejected.

    “For nonuniversity track students, more students applied due to exposure to the Phase II over Phase I program, but some of these additional applicants were rejected.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    The Internal Staff + No Fee Waivers model had a zero, or even negative, impact on application rates.

    “Offering application assistance while still requiring students to pay the $100 fee had a zero, or even negative, impact on application rates.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    Using equation (1), the estimated effect is an increase in college enrollment by 5.0 percentage points, with a standard error of 1.3 percentage points.

    “Using equation (1) instead, the standard error is smaller at 1.3 percentage points, and the estimated effect is an increase in college enrollment by 5.0 percentage points.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    In the 2011-12 school year, the college application rate among graduating seniors from control schools was 65.4 percent, and for program schools it was 11.9 percentage points higher (77.3 percent), with a standard error of 2.5 percentage points using student-level data.

    “In the 2011-12 school year, the college application rate among graduating seniors from control schools was 65.4 percent.For program schools, the rate was 11.9 percentage points higher (77.3 percent).The standard error around this difference using student-level data is 2.5 percentage points.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    For students with university-level courses, there was a significant decrease in 2-year college enrollment of 0.049 (se=0.018) and an offsetting increase in 4-year enrollment of 0.036 (se=0.027).

    “We also observe a significant decrease in 2-year college enrollment for these students [-0.049 (se=0.018)] and an offsetting increase in 4-year enrollment [0.036 (se=0.027)].”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    For Phase II university-track students, application effects were driven only by increases in 4-year college applications, whereas there were no subsequent enrollment effects in Phase I or II.

    “Supporting evidence includes the finding that, for Phase II university-track students, application effects were driven only by increases in 4-year college applications, whereas we saw no subsequent enrollment effects in Phase I or II.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    All three of these models also generated similar increases in applications for students taking university-track courses in Grade 12, and for students taking vocational courses.

    “All three of these models also generated similar increases in applications for students taking university-track courses in Grade 12, and for students taking vocational courses.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    Offering personal assistance without waiving application fees had a negligible or even negative impact on applications and enrollment.

    “Offering personal assistance without waiving application fees had a negligible or even negative impact on applications and enrollment.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Findingown data

    In the control group, 30.9 percent of Grade 12 students stayed in high school.

    “Some stayed, along with other Grade 12s who did not satisfy enough requirements to graduate (30.9 percent stayed overall).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    The point estimates for college enrollment the following year at schools without fee waivers are negative and, in some cases, significant at the 10 percent confidence level.

    “The point estimates for college enrollment the following year at schools without fee waivers (shown in Table 6) are correspondingly negative and, in some cases, significant at the 10 percent confidence level.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    The paper easily rejects equal effects for Phase I and Phase II (0.044 (se=0.013) for Phase I, -0.007 (se=0.019) for Phase II), especially for the sample of students with no university-track courses (0.086 (se=0.016) for Phase I, -0.011 (se=0.020) for Phase II).

    “However, we easily reject equal effects (0.044 (se=0.013)for Phase I, -0.007 (se=0.019)for Phase II), especially for the sample of students with no university-track courses (0.086 (se=0.016)for Phase I, -0.011 (se=0.020)for Phase II).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Interpretationreasoning

    Better guidance in picking appropriate programs and waiving application fees are important conditions for providing college transition support directly to low-transition high schools.

    “Better guidance in picking appropriate programs and waiving application fees are clearly important conditions for providing college transition support directly to low-transition high schools.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim
    • Rests on an assumption: The application fee could act as a significant barrier to disadvantaged students' learning about their actual eligibility and likelihood of acceptance.

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S4 (based).

    Interpretationnone given

    Another reason for the low graduation rate is that some graduates stay for another year to boost their grade average before applying to college.

    “Another reason is that some graduates stay for another year to boost their grade average before applying to college.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Interpretationcitation

    These results are quite comparable to those of studies examining other ways to simplify the college transition.

    “These results are quite comparable to those of studies examining other ways to simplify the college transition.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 3 sources checked
    • cites Bettinger et al. (2012) source
    • cites Carrell and Sacerdote (2013)

      Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

    • cites Castleman and Page (2015) source

  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim.

    Premisecitation

    Reviews of existing research on returns to higher education suggest high rates of return to college, even for marginal students.

    “Reviews of existing research on returns to higher education suggests high rates of return to college, even for marginal students (Oreopoulos and Peteronjevic, 2013, Hout, 2012, Barrow and Malamud, 2015).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 3 sources checked
    • cites Oreopoulos and Peteronjevic, 2013

      Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

    • cites Hout, 2012 source
    • cites Barrow and Malamud, 2015 source

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing). May combine two claims.

    Study design and conductreasoning

    With only 86 schools and school-level heterogeneity, precision was increased by conditioning on prior school-level differences using school and cohort fixed effects and by clustering standard errors at the school level.

    “But with only 86 schools and school-level heterogeneity, we can increase precision by conditioning on prior school-level differences using school ( s δ ) and cohort ( c δ ) fixed effects, and by clustering standard errors at the school level.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing). May combine two claims.

    Study design and conductown data

    The study does not have information on application rejections at the 4-year postsecondary level, but does at the 2-year level from the Ontario College Application Service (OCAS).

    “We do not have information on application rejections at the 4-year postsecondary level, but we do at the 2-year level from the Ontario College Application Service (OCAS).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Study design and conductown data

    The linked file does not contain information on students who applied to colleges outside the province of Ontario.

    “The linked file does not contain information on students who applied to colleges outside the province of Ontario, though this number is likely small.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim
    • Rests on an assumption: The number of students who applied to colleges outside the province of Ontario is small.

  • May combine two claims.

    Study design and conductreasoning

    The main outcomes are college program applications and college enrollment, but not financial aid applications.

    “Our main outcomes, therefore, are college program applications college enrollment, but not financial aid applications.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Castleman and Page (2015) examined sending text reminders and offering phone-support for college transition tasks over the summer; fall enrollment rates for recent high school graduates who had at least started the FAFSA increased, on average, by 3 percentage points.

    “Castleman and Page (2015) examined sending text reminders and offering phone-support for getting through remaining college transition tasks over the summer.Fall enrollment rates for recent high school graduates who had at least started the FAFSA increased, on average, by 3 percentage points.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Castleman and Page (2015) source

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Interpretationreasoning

    Assuming equal program effects for all versions with fee waivers, the program effect is a 2.3 percentage point increase in enrollment, with a standard error of 1.0 percentage points.

    “Assuming this, the program effect is a 2.3 percentage point increase in enrollment, with a standard error of 1.0 percentage points.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim
    • The authors state this as an assumption: The program effects are actually equal for all versions of LifeAfterHighSchool with fee waivers.

  • May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    In Carrell and Sacerdote (2013), counselors identified Grade 12 students for individual support with undergraduate students through all application steps and application fee waivers; program applications increased 29 percentage points and college enrollment 5 percentage points.

    “Another study by Carrell and Sacerdote (2013) involved counselors identifying particular Grade 12 students as possible beneficiaries from receiving individual support with undergraduate students to help and encourage them through all application steps, along with application fee waivers.Program applications increased 29 percentage points and college enrollment 5 percentage points.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Carrell and Sacerdote (2013)

      Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

  • May combine two claims.

    Study design and conductreasoning

    The Ministry of Training, Colleges, and Universities tried to link administrative data on OSAP recipients attending college with other data to identify students from program and control schools, but researchers concluded that the match quality was too poor to be of use.

    “The Ministry of Training, Colleges, and Universities tried to link their administrative data on OSAP recipients attending college with other data in order to identify students from our program and control schools, but researchers concluded that the match quality was too poor to be of use.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    The FAFSA study shows that students who enrolled in college because of the program persisted into second year and had to navigate subsequent financial aid and registration requirements on their own.

    “The FAFSA study also shows students than enrolled in college because of the program persisted into second year and had to navigate subsequent financial aid and registration requirements on their own.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites FAFSA study

      Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim.

    Study design and conductreasoning

    The study did not use subsequent cohorts as part of the estimating equation in case younger students benefit from having older schoolmates go through the program.

    “We do not use subsequent cohorts as part of the estimating equation in case younger students benefit from having older schoolmates go through the program.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Interpretationown data

    Relatively small changes in implementation of LifeAfterHighSchool successfully increased college application rates even further, but may also have altered the types of programs participants considered and applied for.

    “In short, relatively small changes in implementation of LifeAfterHighSchool successfully increased college application rates even further, but may also have altered the types of programs participants considered and applied for.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Interpretationreasoning

    Guidance in choosing programs that will accept students, along with application fee waivers, appear to be important prerequisites for successfully helping with the college transition.

    “Guidance in choosing programs that will accept students, along with application fee waivers, therefore appear to be important prerequisites for successfully helping with the college transition.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Interpretationown data

    Waiving application fees is an important necessary condition for making in-class assistance worthwhile, as students were not willing to respond to in-class support if required to pay to submit an application.

    “We also learned that waiving application fees is an important necessary condition for making in-class assistance worthwhile, as students were not willing to respond to in-class support if required to pay to submit an application.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Study design and conductreasoning

    The study cannot tell for sure at the individual or average level whether those affected by simplifying the transition benefit, since no experiment has yet looked at longer-term outcomes like earnings.

    “We cannot tell for sure at the individual level or even the average level since no experiment has yet looked at longer-term outcomes like arnings.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim

  • May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Hoxby and Turner (2013) found that mailing disadvantaged high-SAT students suggestions for selective schools they were likely to be accepted into, along with fee waiver vouchers, increased the number of applications sent and the enrollment rate at more selective colleges by 5 percentage points.

    “A related study by Hoxby and Turner (2013) looked at helping disadvantaged students with high SAT scores transition to more selective schools.Mailing these Grade 12 students suggestions for selective schools they were likely to be accepted into, along with fee waiver vouchers, increased the number of applications sent and the enrollment rate at more selective colleges by 5 percentage points.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Hoxby and Turner (2013)

      Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing). May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    The material was based, in part, on the information experiment used by Oreopoulos and Dunn (2013), which generated increased educational aspirations, aid expectations, and interest in obtaining further college information.

    “The material was based, in part, on the information experiment used byOreopoulos and Dunn (2013), which generated increased educational aspirations, aid expectations, and interest in obtaining further college information.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Oreopoulos and Dunn (2013) source

  • May combine two claims.

    Interpretationcitation

    The possibility that economic conditions changed between the two treatment years and students in Phase II were less interested in going to college is unlikely, since the province's unemployment rate fell only by .6 percentage points between the two years.

    “Another possibility is that economic conditions changed between the two treatment years, and students in Phase II were less interested in going to college.This also seems unlikely, since the province's unemployment rate fell only by .6 percentage points between the two years.21”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites [21] 21. Statistics Canada. No date. Labour force characteristics (table). Summary Tables. Last updated January 8, 2016. Retrieved from http://www.statcan.gc.ca/tables-tableaux/sum- som/l01/cst01/econ10-eng.htm

      Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

52 of 52

  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    The LifeAfterHighSchool program would make crossing the bridge from high school to college an easier path to take.

    “The premise was that the program would make crossing the bridge from high school to college an easier path to take.”

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Ontario requires no additional standardized tests or essays for most college and university programs.

    “The province of Ontario is a particularly attractive region to consider application assistance because no additional standardized tests or essays are required to be considered for most college and university programs.”

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The application fee could act as a significant barrier to disadvantaged students' learning about their actual eligibility and likelihood of acceptance.

    “The application fee could act as a significant barrier to disadvantaged students' learning about their actual eligibility and likelihood of acceptance.”

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The number of students who applied to colleges outside the province of Ontario is small.

    “The linked file does not contain information on students who applied to colleges outside the province of Ontario, though this number is likely small.”

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    To maintain even an option of going to college when exiting high school, students must get through the application process.

    “To maintain even an option of going to college when exiting high school, students must get through the application process.”

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Completing the financial aid application only involves answering factual questions, while completing the program application involves considering what programs will accept and interest students.

    “Completing the financial aid application only involves answering factual questions, but completing the program application involves considering what programs will accept and interest students.”

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The largest cost item of the program was covering the approximate $100 fee per student.

    “Since the largest cost item of the program was covering the approximate $100 fee per student, the Ontario government wanted to test whether application rates would change if students received in-class assistance but were left to pay on their own.”

  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    The program effects are actually equal for all versions of LifeAfterHighSchool with fee waivers.

    “One possibility is that the program effects are actually equal for all versions of LifeAfterHighSchool with fee waivers, and that we can obtain a more precise estimate by combining the two samples.Assuming this, the program effect is a 2.3 percentage point increase in enrollment, with a standard error of 1.0 percentage points.”
8 of 8

Self-check

Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.

Each contradiction between two passages listed here was confirmed by an independent check.

  • Vocational-student application increase conflicts with the stated final rate

    Major

    The table gives a 16.7% control rate and a 33-percentage-point program effect, implying a 49.7% rate with the program. The text instead says the rate rose from 16.7% to 33.0%.

  • Enrollment rate for high-grade graduates disagrees with the table

    Minor

    For graduates averaging at least 75%, the table reports a 66.8% control enrollment rate and a 4.4-percentage-point effect, implying 71.2%. The prose instead gives 70.2%.

  • Internal-staff enrollment standard error differs tenfold

    Minor

    The prose reports a standard error of 0.37 for the 0.031 estimate, while Table 7 reports 0.037 for that estimate.

  • Phase I application subcategories do not add to their total

    Minor

    Students who applied to a two-year college must fall into either the received-offer or no-offer category. The reported Phase I effects for those categories sum to 37.352 students per school, not the reported total effect of 35.29; the Phase II figures do add up.

    Reported 35.29 · recomputed 37.352

  • Reported joint application rate exceeds either component rate

    Minor

    For all Grade 12 students in the control group, the table reports that 32.1% applied to both college and university, although only 22.7% applied to college at all. A joint rate cannot exceed either component rate.

  • No-fee-waiver model is described as both successful and ineffective

    Minor

    One passage attributes a 38.7-percentage-point application increase to the Internal Staff + No Fee Waivers model. The next passage says that same model had zero or negative effects; the table assigns the 38.7-point increase to Internal Staff + Fee waivers instead.

  • Two descriptions give different denominators for Table 9 Panel B

    Minor

    The discussion says Panel B divides counts by the number of Grade 12 students, while the later note says it divides them by the fraction of Grade 12 graduates. Those denominators are different quantities.

7 of 7

Cites

Flagged first, then by citations

2 of the 38 references couldn’t be matched to a known paper.

Research works printed but not linked: 7

  1. Ford R., 2016, Future to discover: Sixth year post‐secondary impacts report
  2. Ford R., 2014, BC AVID Post‐secondary impacts report
  3. Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario (HEQCO), 2013, Performance indicators: A report on where we are and where we are going
  4. Horn L., 2011, Web tables: Community college student outcomes: 1994 2009 (NCES 2012-253)
  5. Juszkiewicz J., 2015, Trends in community college enrollment and completion data, 2015
  6. National Center for Education Statistics, 2018, (
  7. Statistics Canada, 2017, (

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Related

Authors
Oreopoulos, P., & Ford, R.
Affiliations
National Bureau of Economic Research (US)
ORCID
Oreopoulos, Philip
Venue
Journal of Policy Analysis and Management
Publisher
Wiley
Published
2019-01-21
Volume
38
Issue
2
Pages
426-454
ISSN
  • 0276-8739 (ISSN-L)
  • 1520-6688
DOI
10.1002/pam.22115
OpenAlex
W2414277173
Cited by
65
References
38
Citations by year
2026: 2 · 2025: 9 · 2024: 8 · 2023: 7 · 2022: 13 · 2021: 9 · 2020: 9 · 2019: 3 · 2018: 1 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 1
FWCI
22.93
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor (vor)
Locations
Journal of Policy Analysis and Management (publishedVersion)
Funders
Sugar Research and Development Corporation
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Education › Higher Education Research Studies
  • Social Sciences › Education › School Choice and Performance
  • Social Sciences › Safety Research › Career Development and Diversity
Keywords
college application process, college access, college-going rates, application assistance, high school seniors, low-performing schools, financial aid applications, college enrollment, school-based intervention, advanced coursework, gender differences, rural and urban schools

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Claims read by deepseek-v4.1-flash under definition version 3 (extract-v3) on 2026-10-11.

Classified by jev-1.13-20260917 (gold-guideline-v0.2) on 2026-10-11.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

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