Postsecondary career and technical education

Abstract

This report examines differences in enrollment, departure, and completion at postsecondary, subbaccalaureate career and technical education (CTE) programs among a nationally representative sample of students who first entered postsecondary education in academic year 2011–12. Logistic regression results show that female, Hispanic, Pell Grant–recipient, and first-generation college students were more likely to enroll at for-profit institutions relative to public institutions, while Asian students and students with low English proficiency were less likely to do so. Results from event history analysis indicate that black students, students with a disability, first-generation college students, and those who did not receive a Pell Grant (were not low- or moderate-income) were more likely to depart from their CTE program—without earning a degree or certificate—within the first three years of beginning. Students who were female, black, Asian, or had a disability were less likely to complete a CTE credential within three years. These findings imply that colleges could do more to help those students most at risk of non-completion earn their certificate- or associate-level CTE credential within three years.