Not all students enrolled in college are prepared to do college-level work in all subjects. Anticipating this need, most colleges have established processes that are intended to identify students who are not prepared to do college-level work. For example, colleges may establish a threshold score on an entrance test, such as the SAT or ACT, and/or require that students take a placement test. Students who are not prepared for college-level work would then be placed into developmental (or remedial) education, which involves taking courses that are intended to help students succeed. These courses are usually offered on a non-credit basis; therefore, they do not count toward graduation requirements. Alternatively, students who are not prepared for college-level work may be offered corequisite remediation, which involves coupling mainstream, credit-bearing college classes with mandatory non-credit remedial support.

WWC reviews in this topic area focus on developmental education interventions that help incoming and current postsecondary students prepare for college-level coursework, increase academic achievement, improve course completion rates, improve labor market outcomes, and increase degree or certification attainment. Systematic reviews of evidence in this topic area address the following research questions:

• Which developmental education interventions are effective at helping students improve access and enrollment in college?
• Which developmental education interventions are effective at helping students increase credit accumulation and persistence in college?
• Which developmental education interventions are effective at helping students improve academic achievement?
• Which developmental education interventions are effective at helping students complete college?
• Which developmental education interventions are effective at helping students improve their prospects in the labor market?
• Is the reviewed intervention more or less effective for certain subgroups of students (including first-generation college students, women, racial/ethnic minorities, academically underprepared students, or students from low socioeconomic status backgrounds [e.g., Pell Grant recipients], and/or community college students)?