MyVoice: Youth Perspectives on Barriers to College
While some overarching barriers to college access and success—including cost and academic preparation—are well documented in literature, the challenges individual students face are more nuanced. This policy brief uses data collected from the MyVoice project to highlight, in students’ own voices, barriers to college access, factors influencing decisions to attend college, and the challenges faced en route to earning a degree.
Obtaining a college degree has long been associated with higher income and better labor market outcomes. Yet of students graduating high school in 2016, nearly one-third (32%) did not attend college. Of those who do attend college, 73% of public university students and only 46% of community college students complete their degree within six years. Of Detroit students graduating in 2016, approximately 46% did not enroll in college.
To address these challenges, Governor Gretchen Whitmer proposed that the state of Michigan launch the MI Opportunity Scholarship, a two-year debt-free plan to ensure that every Michigander is provided with two years of college debt-free—a plan that has the potential to make a college degree more financially attainable for many Michigan residents. While the MI Opportunity Scholarship is still being debated in the legislature, students still face a variety of challenges beyond financial support in attending college and earning a degree. In fact, research suggests that policy solutions must seek to address multiple barriers—not just financial barriers—that students encounter in their college transition and enrollment.
Key findings
- Although cost is the most widely cited barrier, young people report many other barriers to college.
- Mental health challenges are a significant barrier for many students.
- Policy makers should attend to more than just the affordability of college when seeking to increase college access and success.
