College Canceled: What Happened to California's High School Graduating Class of 2020?

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Bibliographic Details
Title: College Canceled: What Happened to California's High School Graduating Class of 2020?
Language: English
Authors: Scott Carrell, Kramer Dykeman (ORCID 0009-0007-0954-0360), Michal Kurlaender, Paco Martorell
Source: Educational Researcher. 2025 54(9):528-539.
Availability: SAGE Publications. 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Tel: 800-818-7243; Tel: 805-499-9774; Fax: 800-583-2665; e-mail: journals@sagepub.com; Web site: https://sagepub.com
Peer Reviewed: Y
Page Count: 12
Publication Date: 2025
Sponsoring Agency: Institute of Education Sciences (ED)
Contract Number: R305E150006
Document Type: Journal Articles
Reports - Research
Education Level: High Schools
Secondary Education
Higher Education
Postsecondary Education
Two Year Colleges
Descriptors: Outcomes of Education, High School Graduates, College Enrollment, Enrollment Trends, Pandemics, COVID-19, Declining Enrollment, Community College Students, Minority Group Students, Low Income Students, Selective Admission, Equal Education
Geographic Terms: California
DOI: 10.3102/0013189X251357674
ISSN: 0013-189X
1935-102X
Abstract: Using individual-level administrative data from California linked to survey data, this study explores how and why recent high school graduates' college trajectories may have been altered by the pandemic. We find sizable negative effects on college enrollment for the California high school graduating class of 2020. Similar to national trends, we find these enrollment declines were largest in the community college sector and for underrepresented minority students, low-income students, and students from high schools with low college-sending rates. At the same time, enrollment in the highly selective University of California system increased. These enrollment gains were concentrated among Asian and White students and those who attended high schools that historically send a large share of their graduates to college. Thus, the pandemic appears to have worsened inequalities not only in overall college enrollment but also in access to more elite institutions.
Abstractor: As Provided
IES Funded: Yes
Entry Date: 2025
Accession Number: EJ1490856
Database: ERIC
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