Students at for-profit colleges are more likely to be unemployed and earn less in the six years after graduation than their peers at community colleges, according to a study by Harvard University researchers.
For-profit colleges serve a larger percentage of students who "tend to struggle in college," according to the report released last week by the Center for Analysis of Postsecondary Education and Employment at Teachers College of Columbia University.
For-profit colleges educate a larger fraction of minority, disadvantaged and older students who are disproportionately single parents, have lower family incomes and are twice as likely to have a high school equivalent diploma, according to the report. The schools are required to hit benchmarks for loan repayment and graduates' incomes to qualify for federal student aid.
"We also find that for-profit students end up with higher unemployment and 'idleness' rates and lower earnings six years after entering programs than do comparable students from other schools, and that they have far greater student debt burdens and default rates on their student loans," wrote Harvard researchers David Deming, Claudia Goldin and Lawrence Katz, who are affiliated with the New York-based center.
Copyright ©2012 Omaha World-Herald®. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, displayed or redistributed for any purpose without permission from the Omaha World-Herald.
