Long-term randomized controlled trial (RCT) results for...

ASAP Ohio, providing academic, personal, and financial supports to low-income community college students

Reviewed

Postsecondary Education
Accurately reported
Credible positive finding

MDRC (April 2024) posted long-term RCT results for ASAP Ohio –  a replication of the successful CUNY-ASAP program, which provides academic, personal, and financial supports to low-income community college students. This high-quality RCT found a remarkable 15 percentage point increase in degree completion and 14% gain in annual earnings at the eight-year mark.

Obtaining a degree from a community college is a strong pathway to numerous career opportunities for students from low-income backgrounds. Unfortunately, graduation rates from community colleges are often very low, so many students do not reap the benefits of a degree. Within public two-year institutions, only 43 percent of first-time, full-time, degree-seeking students graduate in six years. With the goal of increas­ing the graduation rates of students who face many barriers to educa­tional success, three community colleges in Ohio—Cincinnati State Tech­nical and Community College, Cuyahoga Community College, and Lorain County Community College—implemented programs based on the Accel­erated Study in Associate Programs (ASAP) model. Designed by the City University of New York (CUNY), the ASAP model provides students with up to three years of financial, academic, and personal support and services that address multiple student challenges.

Over the past decade, MDRC has been evaluating the effectiveness of the ASAP Ohio programs using a randomized controlled trial. MDRC has previously disseminated findings after three and six years of follow-up. This brief extends the follow-up period to eight years, contains updated academic and labor market findings, and examines whether the positive impacts that were found after six years have persisted.  After eight years, the program  continues to have a positive impact on graduation: 46 percent of students in the program group earned a degree compared with 31 percent in the control group, an increase of 15 percentage points. This sustained academic impact continues to drive significant impacts on earnings for the program group, which earned $3,337 more than the control group’s average of $24,596 in Year 8—an increase of 14 percent.

In a time of increasing public skepticism about the value of a college degree, these findings affirm the role of community colleges as a driver of economic mobility—and comprehensive student support programs like ASAP are an evidence-backed way to achieve that goal.

Full Study Report

We have no suggested revisions to the study’s published abstract.

No-Spin’s Study Overview

Large, high quality RCT of Ohio ASAP – a replication of the CUNY-ASAP program of student support at three Ohio community colleges – finds a remarkable 15 percentage point increase in degree completion and 14% gain in annual earnings after eight years.

Program:

  • Ohio ASAP is a replication of the City University of New York’s ASAP program at three Ohio community colleges. The program provides students with comprehensive academic, personal, and financial supports, and requires them to enroll full time.
  • As implemented in Ohio, the program’s total cost was approximately $9800/student over three years (in 2023 dollars).

Study Design:

  • The RCT sample comprised 1,501 low-income students across three Ohio community colleges (64% female, 35% Black, 34% first in family to attend college).
  • Based on careful review, this was a high-quality RCT (e.g., baseline balance, negligible attrition, preregistered primary outcomes).

Findings:

  • Eight years after program entry, the study found: (i) a 15 percentage point increase in completion of a two-year or four-year degree (46% treatment vs. 31% control); and (ii) a 14% ($3,337) gain in annual earnings in year 8 ($27,934 treatment vs. $24,596 control). Both impacts were statistically significant.
  • The impact on degree completion has remained steady for five years. The impact on earnings (14%) is slightly larger than that observed at the six-year follow-up (12%).

Comment:

  • The ASAP model – along with its sister program ACE, for four-year college students – has now been found to produce large impacts on degree completion in four high-quality RCTs. The ASAP Ohio RCT is the first to measure long-term earnings impacts.
  • Disclosure: Arnold Ventures, which funds No-Spin Evidence Review, funded the ASAP Ohio long-term follow-up.

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