Information and college attendance: Evidence from a randomized trial

Free and open to the public. About the Presentation: Improving students' access to information about college attendance and affordability is a simple, inexpensive intervention which has received much attention in policy circles. The hope is that providing accurate information to potential college students may dramatically improve their ability to calibrate the costs and benefits of college. Many have argued that providing information early in their high school years might build more expectations about college attendance. This presentation focuses on findings from a large-scale randomized experiment to test these theories. About the Author: Dr. Eric Bettinger's recent research focuses on strategies to improve students' retention in college. In recent years, Dr. Bettinger has participated in the evaluation of a randomized experiment which streamlines the financial aid application process for low-income families. Prior to arriving at Stanford in 2008, Dr. Bettinger was an Associate Professor at the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve University. He earned his PhD in economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and his BA from Brigham Young University. Bettinger is also a Faculty Research Fellow at the NBER.

• college attendance
• Eric Bettinger