Pell Grant Versus Income Data in Postsecondary Research

Abstract

Given growing disparities in college enrollment by household income, policymakers and researchers often are interested in understanding whether policies expand access for low-income students. In this brief, we highlight the limitations of a commonly available measure of low-income status—whether students receive a federal Pell grant—and compare it to new data on enrollment by income quintile to evaluate a recent policy effort within elite colleges aimed at expanding access. We demonstrate that Pell is a rough measure of low-income status and that without more detailed data on colleges’ economic diversity, policy evaluations focusing on existing Pell data will suffer from measurement error and potentially miss enrollment effects for moderate- and high-income students.

The Role of Selective College Admissions Criteria in Interrupting or Reproducing Racial and Economic Inequities

“…These findings indicate that de-emphasizing or eliminating test scores from admissions consideration may be one way to interrupt inequitable enrollment patterns at these institutions. Prior analyses of testoptional policies indicate they have done little to expand access (Belasco et al, 2015;Rosinger & Ford, 2019;Saboe & Terrizzi, 2019). However, the recent decision by the University of California system (and many others in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic) to enact test-optional policies and debates over the role of test scores in graduate and professional education warrant additional analyses.…”

“…However, quasi-experimental analyses of test-optional policies have shown that they have done little to expand access (Belasco et al, 2015;Rosinger & Ford, 2019;Saboe & Terrizzi, 2019). In some cases, rather than expand access, they boosted institutional selectivity through increased applications and higher SAT scores reported to rankings agencies (Belasco et al, 2015).…”

“…Our outcome variables were shares of enrollment among two groups of marginalized students 8 : students who identify as either Latinx, Black, or Native American (among first-year, first-time, full-time students), and low-income students (defined as students receiving the federal Pell grant among all enrolled students). Although receipt of the Pell grant is a rough proxy for low-income status (Rosinger & Ford, 2019), it is the only measure of students' economic background available in our dataset. Outcome data came from the National Center of Education Statistics' Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS).…”

Understanding Inclusion and Equity in Community College Education Abroad

“…Newer research shows that Pell status is not a reliable indicator of lower socioeconomic status as Pell Grants can be awarded to a range of income levels. In some contexts, low-income students cannot get Pell Grants while other students do (Delisle, 2017;Harwell, 2018;Rosinger & Ford, 2019). While almost all of our survey respondents shared that providing financial assistance to students is essential to inclusive study abroad practices, we do not currently know the extent to which Pell status determines who receives financial aid for study abroad.…”

Assessing the Relationship Between Pell Grant and Federal Student Loan at Louisiana Four-Year Public Institutions

“…The Pell Grant program is administered by the United States Department of Education, which determines the student's Pell eligibility through their financial need. Unlike the student loan, the Pell grants doesn't have to be repaid (Davidson, 2014;Baum, 2015;Mastrorilli, 2016;Rosinger and Ford, 2019).…”