NCHEMS partnered with Bruce Vandal consulting, WestEd, and Postsecondary Policy Partners on this study for the Minnesota Office of Higher Education and the Minnesota State system. The study, mandated by state legislation, examined developmental education placement, enrollment, completion, and workforce outcomes across the Minnesota State (Minn State) System, which is comprised of 26 community colleges and seven universities. Developmental education, also known as remedial or pre-college coursework, refers to courses that some students are required to take as preparation for college-level English and math courses, but which do not count towards their degree. Previous research indicates that developmental course placement can be correlated with lower rates of student persistence and completion, especially for students of color. The state legislature and the System were seeking to understand how developmental education at Minn State currently compares to best practices and how it impacts students. The system has ambitious equity goals, so it was particularly interested in identifying areas where developmental education has disparate effects on different student populations.
NCHEMS was specifically responsible for quantitative data analysis around trends in developmental education enrollment and student success. We sought to answer the question of how developmental education impacts important student success outcomes and how those impacts vary for different student populations. We analyzed data on placement, enrollment, college-level course success, persistence, graduation, and employment. We disaggregated the data by various student characteristics of interest, including race/ethnicity, age, full-time or part-time status, free/reduced meal status, high school background, English learner status, and enrolled institution.
We discovered that students from marginalized backgrounds — such as those defined by race, English learner status, and family income — are more likely to enroll in developmental coursework. Developmental enrollment negatively affects several important outcomes for these students. Specifically, those who take developmental courses tend to persist and graduate at lower rates compared to their peers, and they also earn lower wages after graduation.