| An emerging strategy in higher education and workforce development policy circles aims to raise local, state, and national degree attainment rates by targeting those who left postsecondary education after earning significant college credits but without completing a degree. This dissertation examines some of the assumptions behind these programs testing whether these "near completers" who return to finish a degree receive a positive economic return compared to those who do not return to finish a degree. Additionally, this research examines whether their outcomes are impacted by the sector (either public, private non-profit, or private for-profit) of the college or university at which they complete their degree. Finally, this study examines whether individual characteristics affect the likelihood that an individual who has stopped out of college will return to complete a degree. Overall, I find that the economic return varies across racial/ethnic background and that not all subgroups earn a positive return from finishing a degree, but returns do not differ by sector. Finally, I find that many of the factors generally associated with increased educational attainment do not appear to have a relationship with the likelihood of finishing a degree. |
