Across the country, many states have implemented early education and career planning (ECP) requirements as a promising intervention to assist high school students in their postsecondary preparation.
In 2009, 86% of public high schools required students to develop an education plan, career plan, or both. Schools that required ECPs were more likely to be rural and serve higher percentages of Black students and economically disadvantaged students than
schools that did not require ECPs.
Of the 12,600 high school students in the sample, 62% completed their ECP in the fall of ninth grade. Students across all the subgroups (race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, ninth-grade math achievement scores) had high rates of participation in early
planning and low rates of adult support and yearly review of their ECP. For instance, 40% of students reported receiving support from an adult to develop their ECP. Only a quarter of students reported meeting with an adult at school to review ECP
at least once a year. The source of adult support varied from a counselor, teacher, parent, or a different adult.
With regard to the impact of early planning on students’ postsecondary outcomes, the findings suggest that:
Students who participated in early planning were no more or less likely to display college-going behaviors when compared to students who did not participate.
Students who received parental support when developing their ECP in ninth grade were more likely to complete a college preparatory curriculum, enroll in college, and enroll in a bachelor’s degree program than students who did not receive the same
support.
Students who reviewed their ECP annually with an adult in school were more likely to submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), and apply to and enroll in college than those that did not.
Notably, these findings are correlational and descriptive, not causal. These are survey data, not an experimental design. Despite the positive association between adults playing a role in driving college-going behaviors and outcomes for high school students,
the findings imply that a majority of high school students navigated the early planning process without adult support.
Stakeholders at the state, district, and school levels should consider (re)designing and (re)implementing early postsecondary planning requirements that infuse teacher and parent engagement into programming. By tapping into school-based social capital
and incorporating parents into early education and career planning, our young people will be better prepared and supported when completing key college-going milestones.
Email to a Friend