Martinez, Alina; Linkow, Tamara; Miller, Hannah; Parsad, Amanda (2018). National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance. Retrieved from: https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED588782
Reviewed: September 2021
This review may not reflect the full body of research evidence for this intervention.
Evidence Tier rating based solely on this study. This intervention may achieve a higher tier when combined with the full body of evidence.
|
Outcome measure |
Comparison | Period | Sample |
Intervention mean |
Comparison mean |
Significant? |
Improvement index |
Evidence tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Selectivity- applied to Baron's most competitive |
Enhanced College Advising vs. Upward Bound |
0 Days |
Full sample;
|
11.00 |
7.40 |
Yes |
|
|
|
Applied to 4 or more colleges |
Enhanced College Advising vs. Upward Bound |
0 Days |
Full sample;
|
53.00 |
43.70 |
Yes |
|
|
|
Outcome measure |
Comparison | Period | Sample |
Intervention mean |
Comparison mean |
Significant? |
Improvement index |
Evidence tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Completed FAFSA |
Enhanced College Advising vs. Upward Bound |
0 Days |
Full sample;
|
64.60 |
60.90 |
No |
-- |
Characteristics of study sample as reported by study author.
| Black | 39% | |
| Other or unknown | 38% | |
| White | 23% |
| Hispanic | 26% | |
| Not Hispanic or Latino | 74% |
The study was conduct with 194 Upward Bound projects in the United States: 98 projects were assigned to the treatment condition and 96 were assigned to the comparison condition. The Upward Bound projects participating in this study served diverse geographic locales: 49.0% City, 17.0% Suburb, 22.2% Town, and 11.9% Rural, as well as regions: 14.4% Northeast, 27.3% Midwest, 37.1% South, 19.6% West, and 1.5% Other.
There were 98 treatment group projects serving 2,336 students and 96 comparison group projects serving 2,107 students. Across the sample of students, 64% identified as female; 38.6% as Black, non-Hispanic, 23.4% White, non-Hispanic, and 38% identified as another race. 25.8% identified as Hispanic. 87.6% indicated they were from a low-income household and 91.7% were first-generation to college. About 34.4% of treatment students had taken one more Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate course. Approximately half of students had B-level GPAs (52%) and approximately a quarter had C-level GPAs.
Students in the intervention group received the "Find the Fit" intervention during their senior year of high school (School Year 2015-2016). The "Find the Fit" intervention added to the traditional Upward Bound activities by providing students with activities, exercises, and handouts about college costs, the logistics of applying to college, information about college quality, and how to grow and adapt. It also provided programmed and customized text messages two times per month from the end of the student's junior year through high school graduation with information about timelines for college applications, financial aid, and registering for college. Last, the program providing training webinars for advisors introducing them to the materials and reviewing the research base on program components so that the advisors could serve students. These three features were in addition to the traditional Upward Bound activities. Students were engaged in the intervention from the end of their junior year through the end of their senior year in high school.
Upward Bound includes academic tutoring, guidance on high school course selection, college advising, college entrance exam preparation, college application assistance, federal financial aid information, assistance with completing financial aid applications, and financial literacy training for students and their families. Students participate in Upward Bound from the end of their junior year through the end of their senior year in high school.
No information provided.
An indicator of the effect of the intervention, the improvement index can be interpreted as the expected change in percentile rank for an average comparison group student if that student had received the intervention.
For more, please see the WWC Glossary entry for improvement index.
An outcome is the knowledge, skills, and attitudes that are attained as a result of an activity. An outcome measures is an instrument, device, or method that provides data on the outcome.
A finding that is included in the effectiveness rating. Excluded findings may include subgroups and subscales.
The sample on which the analysis was conducted.
The group to which the intervention group is compared, which may include a different intervention, business as usual, or no services.
The timing of the post-intervention outcome measure.
The number of students included in the analysis.
The mean score of students in the intervention group.
The mean score of students in the comparison group.
The WWC considers a finding to be statistically significant if the likelihood that the finding is due to chance alone, rather than a real difference, is less than five percent.
The WWC reviews studies for WWC products, Department of Education grant competitions, and IES performance measures.
The name and version of the document used to guide the review of the study.
The version of the WWC design standards used to guide the review of the study.
The result of the WWC assessment of the study. The rating is based on the strength of evidence of the effectiveness of the intervention. Studies are given a rating of Meets WWC Design Standards without Reservations, Meets WWC Design Standards with Reservations, or >Does Not Meet WWC Design Standards.
A related publication that was reviewed alongside the main study of interest.
Study findings for this report.
Based on the direction, magnitude, and statistical significance of the findings within a domain, the WWC characterizes the findings from a study as one of the following: statistically significant positive effects, substantively important positive effects, indeterminate effects, substantively important negative effects, and statistically significant negative effects. For more, please see the WWC Handbook.
The WWC may review studies for multiple purposes, including different reports and re-reviews using updated standards. Each WWC review of this study is listed in the dropdown. Details on any review may be accessed by making a selection from the drop down list.
Evidence Tier
The Department of Education’s evidence tiers. For more information, please see the WWC Glossary entry for evidence tiers.
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