College Completion Network

Open- and broad-access institutions—such as community colleges and four-year colleges and universities that accept 75 percent or more of their applicants—are central to the goal of increasing degree completion among U.S. college students. These institutions create opportunities for a large population of students, including a majority of first-time degree-seeking students.

The College Completion Network, led by AIR and funded by the Institute of Education Sciences, brought together research teams focused on postsecondary success for students—coordinated by a network lead—to share ideas, build new knowledge, conduct strong research, and share findings. Specifically, the network worked to refine and evaluate interventions for increasing the number of students who earn degrees in open- and broad-access institutions with the goal of providing college leaders and policymakers with reliable evidence on promising strategies.

The research teams in the College Completion Network conducted studies to refine and evaluate interventions for increasing the number of students who earn degrees at open- and broad-access institutions with the goal of providing college leaders and policymakers with reliable evidence on promising strategies.

The network sought to achieve four primary goals:

• Evaluate promising interventions related to college completion
• Build new knowledge about college completion and postsecondary success
• Provide policymakers and college leaders with reliable evidence
• Strengthen the work of the network research teams through collaboration