IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/reihed/v65y2024i1d10.1007_s11162-023-09748-5.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Examining the Effects of Tuition Controls on Student Enrollment

Author

Listed:
  • Robert Kelchen

    (University of Tennessee)

  • Sarah Pingel

    (National Center for Higher Education Management Systems (NCHEMS))

Abstract

A growing number of states are placing restrictions on whether public universities can increase tuition, and this trend is likely to continue in the future. Yet no research has examined whether tuition caps or freezes have induced more students—particularly from historically underrepresented groups—to enroll in public higher education. In this paper, we constructed an institution-level dataset of tuition controls mandated by state legislatures or higher education agencies to answer these important questions. We found that tuition freezes were associated with increased enrollment of both in-state and out-of-state students, but primarily at less-selective universities that were willing to expand capacity. There is also some evidence that Hispanic enrollment may have increased following tuition freezes.

Suggested Citation

  • Robert Kelchen & Sarah Pingel, 2024. "Examining the Effects of Tuition Controls on Student Enrollment," Research in Higher Education, Springer;Association for Institutional Research, vol. 65(1), pages 70-91, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:reihed:v:65:y:2024:i:1:d:10.1007_s11162-023-09748-5
    DOI: 10.1007/s11162-023-09748-5
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s11162-023-09748-5
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s11162-023-09748-5?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Clément de Chaisemartin & Xavier D'Haultfœuille, 2020. "Two-Way Fixed Effects Estimators with Heterogeneous Treatment Effects," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 110(9), pages 2964-2996, September.
    2. Miller, Lois & Park, Minseon, 2022. "Making college affordable? The impacts of tuition freezes and caps," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).
    3. William R. Doyle, 2012. "The Politics of Public College Tuition and State Financial Aid," The Journal of Higher Education, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 83(5), pages 617-647, September.
    4. Webber, Douglas A. & Ehrenberg, Ronald G., 2010. "Do expenditures other than instructional expenditures affect graduation and persistence rates in American higher education?," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 29(6), pages 947-958, December.
    5. Webber, Douglas A., 2017. "State divestment and tuition at public institutions," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 1-4.
    6. Stella M. Flores & Justin C. Shepherd, 2014. "Pricing Out the Disadvantaged? The Effect of Tuition Deregulation in Texas Public Four-Year Institutions," The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, , vol. 655(1), pages 99-122, September.
    7. David J. Weerts & Justin M. Ronca, 2012. "Understanding Differences in State Support for Higher Education across States, Sectors, and Institutions: A Longitudinal Study," The Journal of Higher Education, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 83(2), pages 155-185, March.
    8. Michelle Marcus & Pedro H. C. Sant’Anna, 2021. "The Role of Parallel Trends in Event Study Settings: An Application to Environmental Economics," Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, University of Chicago Press, vol. 8(2), pages 235-275.
    9. Delaney, Jennifer A. & Kearney, Tyler D., 2015. "The impact of guaranteed tuition policies on postsecondary tuition levels: A difference-in-difference approach," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 80-99.
    10. Rong Chen & Stephen L. DesJardins, 2010. "Investigating the Impact of Financial Aid on Student Dropout Risks: Racial and Ethnic Differences," The Journal of Higher Education, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 81(2), pages 179-208, March.
    11. David L. Sjoquist & John V. Winters, 2015. "State Merit-Based Financial Aid Programs And College Attainment," Journal of Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 55(3), pages 364-390, June.
    12. Sarah R. Cohodes & Joshua S. Goodman, 2014. "Merit Aid, College Quality, and College Completion: Massachusetts' Adams Scholarship as an In-Kind Subsidy," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 6(4), pages 251-285, October.
    13. Jensen, Michael C. & Meckling, William H., 1976. "Theory of the firm: Managerial behavior, agency costs and ownership structure," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 3(4), pages 305-360, October.
    14. Spence, Michael & Zeckhauser, Richard, 1971. "Insurance, Information, and Individual Action," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 61(2), pages 380-387, May.
    15. Goodman-Bacon, Andrew, 2021. "Difference-in-differences with variation in treatment timing," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 225(2), pages 254-277.
    16. Charles Ka Yui Leung & Joe Cho Yiu Ng & Edward Chi Ho Tang, 2020. "What do we know about housing supply? The case of Hong Kong SAR," Economic and Political Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 8(1), pages 6-20, January.
    17. Sun, Liyang & Abraham, Sarah, 2021. "Estimating dynamic treatment effects in event studies with heterogeneous treatment effects," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 225(2), pages 175-199.
    18. Imai, Kosuke & Kim, In Song, 2021. "On the Use of Two-Way Fixed Effects Regression Models for Causal Inference with Panel Data," Political Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 29(3), pages 405-415, July.
    19. Jennifer A. Delaney & Tyler D. Kearney, 2016. "Alternative Student-Based Revenue Streams for Higher Education Institutions: A Difference-in-Difference Analysis Using Guaranteed Tuition Policies," The Journal of Higher Education, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 87(5), pages 731-769, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Kelchen, Robert & Ortagus, Justin & Rosinger, Kelly & Cassell, Alex, 2022. "The effects of state performance funding policies on student loan debt," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    2. Cl'ement de Chaisemartin & Xavier D'Haultf{oe}uille, 2021. "Two-Way Fixed Effects and Differences-in-Differences with Heterogeneous Treatment Effects: A Survey," Papers 2112.04565, arXiv.org, revised Jun 2022.
    3. Roth, Jonathan & Sant’Anna, Pedro H.C. & Bilinski, Alyssa & Poe, John, 2023. "What’s trending in difference-in-differences? A synthesis of the recent econometrics literature," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 235(2), pages 2218-2244.
    4. Clément de Chaisemartin & Xavier D’Haultfœuille, 2023. "Two-way fixed effects and differences-in-differences with heterogeneous treatment effects: a survey," The Econometrics Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 26(3), pages 1-30.
    5. Miller, Lois & Park, Minseon, 2022. "Making college affordable? The impacts of tuition freezes and caps," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).
    6. Cordonnier, Victor & Covarrubias, Katia Alejandra & de la O Campos, Ana Paula, 2024. "The impacts of widespread agricultural interventions on yields and food security in Ethiopia☆," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 124(C).
    7. Sho Miyaji, 2024. "Instrumented Difference-in-Differences with Heterogeneous Treatment Effects," Papers 2405.12083, arXiv.org, revised Jan 2025.
    8. Taylor, Alan M. & Dube, Arindrajit & Girardi, Daniele & Jordà , Òscar, 2023. "A Local Projections Approach to Difference-in-Differences Event Studies," CEPR Discussion Papers 18141, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    9. Ederington, Josh & Paraschiv, Mihai & Zanardi, Maurizio, 2022. "The short and long-run effects of international environmental agreements on trade," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 139(C).
    10. Hiroko OKUDAIRA & Miho TAKIZAWA & Kenta YAMANOUCHI, 2022. "Does Employee Downsizing Work? Evidence from Product Innovation at Manufacturing Plants," Discussion papers 22015, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    11. Brick, Kerri & De Martino, Samantha & Visser, Martine, 2023. "Behavioural nudges for water conservation in unequal settings: Experimental evidence from Cape Town," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 121(C).
    12. Timo Schenk, 2023. "Time-Weighted Difference-in-Differences: Accounting for Common Factors in Short T Panels," Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 23-004/III, Tinbergen Institute.
    13. Tien Manh Vu & Hiroyuki Yamada, 2021. "Firms and regional favouritism," Economics of Transition and Institutional Change, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 29(4), pages 711-734, October.
    14. Pinotti, Paolo & Bhalotra, Sonia & Britto, Diogo & Sampaio, Breno, 2021. "Job Displacement, Unemployment Benefits and Domestic Violence," CEPR Discussion Papers 16350, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    15. repec:ags:aaea22:335468 is not listed on IDEAS
    16. Li, Ping & Zhang, ZhongXiang, 2023. "The effects of new energy vehicle subsidies on air quality: Evidence from China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 120(C).
    17. Hollenbach, Florian M & Egerod, Benjamin, 2024. "How many is enough? Sample Size in Staggered Difference-in-Differences Designs," OSF Preprints ac5ru, Center for Open Science.
    18. Kihwan Bae & Edward Timmons, 2023. "Now You Can Take It with You: Effects of Occupational Credential Recognition on Labor Market Outcomes," Working Papers 23-03, Department of Economics, West Virginia University.
    19. Gruhl, Henri & Volkhausen, Nicolas & Pestel, Nico & aus dem Moore, Nils, 2022. "Air pollution and the housing market: Evidence from Germany's Low Emission Zones," Ruhr Economic Papers 977, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    20. Maria Luisa Maitino & Marco Mariani & Valentina Patacchini & Letizia Ravagli & Nicola Sciclone, 2024. "The Employment Effects of the Italian Minimum Guaranteed Income Scheme Reddito di Cittadinanza," Italian Economic Journal: A Continuation of Rivista Italiana degli Economisti and Giornale degli Economisti, Springer;Società Italiana degli Economisti (Italian Economic Association), vol. 10(2), pages 649-681, July.
    21. Dalia Ghanem & Pedro H. C. Sant'Anna & Kaspar Wüthrich, 2022. "Selection and Parallel Trends," CESifo Working Paper Series 9910, CESifo.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:spr:reihed:v:65:y:2024:i:1:d:10.1007_s11162-023-09748-5. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.