The Labor Market Returns to For-Profit Higher Education: Evidence for Transfer Students

By: Yuen Ting Liu & Clive Belfield | January 2014

Using student progression and earnings data in two states, this paper examines labor market outcomes for students who enrolled at for-profit colleges after beginning their postsecondary education in community college. The authors find significant penalties for transferring to a for-profit college instead of a public or private nonprofit college.

For-Profit Colleges: Growth, Outcomes, Regulation

October 2013

Based primarily on a report by CAPSEE researchers, this brief examines the rapid growth of for-profit colleges, the outcomes of students who attend for-profits, and the current federal policies that govern these institutions.

For-Profit Colleges

By: David Deming, Claudia Goldin, & Lawrence Katz | Spring 2013

In this article, the authors look at the students who attend for-profits, the reasons they choose these schools, and student outcomes on a number of broad measures and draw several conclusions. This paper appears in The Future of Children.

The For-Profit Postsecondary School Sector: Nimble Critters or Agile Predators?

By: David Deming, Claudia Goldin, & Lawrence Katz | February 2012

This paper describes the schools, students, and programs in the for-profit higher education sector, its phenomenal recent growth, and its relationship to the federal and state governments. A version of this paper also appears in the Journal of Economic Perspectives.