1. Alee Lynch-Gunderson, PhD Student Dr. Pete Villarreal III, Faculty University of Florida School of Human Development and Organizational Studies Higher Education Administration Selection Bias in Educational Debt Decisions: Analyzing the Impacts on Enrollment in Master’s Degree Programs

3. Selected Citations Millett (2003) “How Undergraduate Loan Debt Affects Application and Enrollment in Graduate or First Professional School” Purpose: Effects of debts on students who are most likely prospects for entering graduate and professional school Methodology: Logistic regressions Sample: Recent bachelor’s degree recipients who expect to earn a doctoral degree (1,982 cases) Dataset: Baccalaureate and Beyond: 93/97 Key Limitation: Dataset did not distinguish types of financial support

4. Selected Citations Malcolm & Dowd (forthcoming) “College Student Debt as Opportunity or Disadvantage? A Reconceptualization and Application to STEM Graduate Enrollment” Purpose: Effect of debt on graduate school attendance of STEM majors Methodology: Propensity Score Matching Sample: STEM Bachelor’s recipients from 2000-01 & 2001-02 (7,700 cases) Dataset: 2003 National Survey of Recent College Graduates, 2002-2003 College Board Annual Survey of Colleges and Universities, Institute for College Access and Success, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System, & Barron’s Profiles of American Colleges Key Limitation: Exclusion of other master’s degree programs

5. Selected Citations Perna (2004) “Understanding the Decision to Enroll in Graduate School: Sex and Racial/Ethnic Group Differences” Purposes: Contribute to understanding of underrepresentation of women, African Americans, and Hispanics among doctoral and professional degree enrollees Test a conceptual model for graduate school enrollment Method: Multinomial logit models Sample: Bachelor’s degree recipients in 1992-93 (9,241 cases) Dataset: Baccalaureate and Beyond: 93/97 Key Limitation: Did not control for self-selection bias

6. Perna’s Enrollment Decision Conceptual Model Sex Male Female Race/Ethnicity Asian Black Hispanic White other Expected Costs & Benefits Net price Foregone earnings by undergraduate major Time horizon (delayed college) Marital Status Parental Status Financial & Academic Resources Undergraduate Educational Debt Dependency status Time to Bachelor’s Degree Cumulative Undergraduate GPA SAT/ACT quartile Cultural & Social Capital Parental educational attainment Primary language at home is English Values additional education (B&B 11- item) Parental monetary contribution Carnegie classification Tuition Location Attended two-year college

7. Cultural & Social Capital Parental educational attainment Primary language at home is English Values additional education (B&B 11-item) Parental monetary contribution Carnegie classification Tuition Location Attended two-year college

8. Perna’s Enrollment Decision Conceptual Model Sex Male Female Race/Ethnicity Asian Black Hispanic White other Expected Costs & Benefits Net price Foregone earnings by undergraduate major Time horizon (delayed college) Marital Status Parental Status Financial & Academic Resources Undergraduate Educational Debt Dependency status Wen bachelor’s received Cumulative Undergraduate GPA SAT/ACT quartile Cultural & Social Capital Parental educational attainment Primary language at home is English Values additional education (B&B 11- item) Parental monetary contribution Carnegie classification Tuition Location Attended two-year college

9. Expected Costs & Benefits Net price Foregone earnings by undergraduate major Time horizon (delayed college) Marital Status Parental Status

10. Perna’s Enrollment Decision Conceptual Model Sex Male Female Race/Ethnicity Asian Black Hispanic White other Expected Costs & Benefits Net price Foregone earnings by undergraduate major Time horizon (delayed college) Marital Status Parental Status Financial & Academic Resources Undergraduate Educational Debt Dependency status Wen bachelor’s received Cumulative Undergraduate GPA SAT/ACT quartile Cultural & Social Capital Parental educational attainment Primary language at home is English Values additional education (B&B 11- item) Parental monetary contribution Carnegie classification Tuition Location Attended two-year college

11. Financial & Academic Resources Undergraduate Educational Debt Dependency status Time to Bachelor’s Degree Cumulative Undergraduate GPA SAT/ACT quartile

12. Modified Enrollment Decision Conceptual Model Student Characteristics Sex Race/Ethnicity Expected Costs & Benefits Net price Foregone earnings by undergraduate major Time horizon (delayed college) Marital Status Parental Status Financial Resources Undergraduate Educational Debt Dependency status Type of Assistantship Academic Resources Time to Bachelor’s Degree Cumulative Undergraduate GPA SAT/ACT quartile Cultural & Social Capital Parental educational attainment Primary language at home is English Values additional education (B&B 11- item) Parental monetary contribution Carnegie classification Tuition Location Attended two-year college Parent’s have a mortgage Location of employment

13. Financial Resources Undergraduate Educational Debt Dependency status Type of Assistantship

14. Academic Resources Time to Bachelor’s Degree Cumulative Undergraduate GPA SAT/ACT quartile

15. Cultural & Social Capital Parental educational attainment Primary language at home is English Values additional education (B&B 11-item) Parental monetary contribution Carnegie classification Tuition Location Attended two-year college Parent’s have a mortgage Location of employment

16. Research Study How does the likelihood of master’s program enrollment vary by level of undergraduate educational debt? Contributions to Current Body of Research Utilize propensity score methods to control for self- selection bias Control for differing effects between types of financial support National dataset includes students from all master’s degree program areas Dataset: National Postsecondary Student Aid Study 2008

17. What’s Next? January – Submission for an AIR Research Grant January to May – Conduct analyses May – Submission for research presentation at ASHE December – Submit to journal for publication