Title page
Contents
Acknowledgements 7
Disclosure of Potential Conflicts of Interest 8
Executive Summary 9
1. Overview: Studying a Strategy for Enhanced College Advising to Improve College Outcomes in Upward Bound 13
1.1. Rationale: Concern about College Selectivity and Undermatch 13
1.2. Upward Bound: A Federal College Access Program Seeking to Improve College Outcomes 16
1.3. Find the Fit: A Research-Based Approach to Enhance College Advising 17
1.3.1. Addresses Three Key Challenges through Research-Based Approaches 18
1.3.2. Comprises Three Components 19
1.4. Study Design: Evaluating the Effectiveness of Find the Fit 22
1.4.1. Conceptual Framework for the Study 22
1.4.2. Projects and Students in the Study Sample 23
1.4.3. Random Assignment: Dividing Projects into a Treatment and a Control Group 26
1.4.4. Data Sources 26
1.4.5. Measures of Interim Outcomes and Implementation 28
1.4.6. Analytic Methods 29
2. Effects on Early Indicators of College Going 32
3. Implementation of the Enhanced College Advising Strategy 47
4. Looking Ahead 53
References 54
Exhibits
Exhibit ES. Impact of Find the Fit on Early Indicators of College Going 10
Exhibit 1.1. College Academic Undermatch Nationally among 2004 High School Graduating Seniors, by Socioeconomic Status 14
Exhibit 1.2. Upward Bound Required Services 16
Exhibit 1.3. Percentage of College-Going Upward Bound Seniors Who Enrolled at the Institution Hosting their Upward Bound Project, by Type of Host Institution 17
Exhibit 1.4. Content in Find the Fit Components Mapped to the Three Challenges Addressed by Find the Fit 21
Exhibit 1.5. Study's Conceptual Framework of How Find the Fit Influences Outcomes 23
Exhibit 1.6. Upward Bound Host Institution Characteristics for Participating Projects and All Eligible Projects 24
Exhibit 1.7. Upward Bound Student Characteristics for Students in Participating Projects and in All Eligible Projects 25
Exhibit 1.8. Data Sources Used in This Report 27
Exhibit 1.9. Interim Outcome Measures Examined in This Report 28
Exhibit 1.10. Implementation and College Advising Measures Examined in This Report 29
Exhibit 1.11. Student and Project Subgroups, Rationale for Inclusion, and Sample Size 31
Exhibit 2.1. Impact of Find the Fit on Whether Students Applied to Four or More Colleges 33
Exhibit 2.2. Impact of Find the Fit on Whether Students Applied to Four or More Colleges, by Student Subgroup 34
Exhibit 2.3. Impact of Find the Fit on Whether Students Applied to Four or More Colleges, by Project Subgroup 35
Exhibit 2.4. Impact of Find the Fit on Selectivity Level of Colleges to which Students Applied 36
Exhibit 2.5. Impact of Find the Fit on Selectivity Level of Colleges to which Students Applied, by Student Subgroup 38
Exhibit 2.6. Impact of Find the Fit on Selectivity Level of Colleges to which Students Applied, by Project Subgroup 39
Exhibit 2.7. Impact of Find the Fit on Whether Academic Quality was Very Important to Students in Choosing a College 40
Exhibit 2.8. Impact of Find the Fit on Whether Academic Quality was Very Important to Students in Choosing a College, by Student Subgroup 41
Exhibit 2.9. Impact of Find the Fit on Whether Academic Quality was Very Important to Students in Choosing a College, by Project Subgroup 42
Exhibit 2.10. Impact of Find the Fit on Whether Students Completed the FAFSA by March 15 43
Exhibit 2.11. Impact of Find the Fit on Whether Students Completed the FAFSA by March 15, by Student Subgroup 45
Exhibit 2.12. Impact of Find the Fit on Whether Students Completed the FAFSA by March 15, by Project Subgroup 46
Exhibit 3.1. Treatment Group Projects' Overall Implementation of Find the Fit 48
Exhibit 3.2. Treatment Group Projects' Level of Implementation of Find the Fit Components 49
Exhibit 3.3. Duration that Treatment Group Students Were Sent Find the Fit Messages 50
Exhibit 3.4. Students' Reported Receipt of Text Messages from Their Upward Bound Project 50
Exhibit 3.5. Effects of Find the Fit on College Advising in Upward Bound Projects 52