In regard to educational achievement in high school, the findings support the
idea that higher achievement in high school points to a greater likelihood that a
student will attend college. Related to this, the findings support the notion that
students who demonstrate higher educational achievement are less likely to
choose a two-year college and are more likely to choose more selective,
academically prestigious institutions.
Findings concerning price and subsidy confirm that students who choose a
two-year college are extremely price conscious and that financial variables often
figure in their decision-making process.
Summary
Thirty-two variables in this study significantly influence the two-year college
choice decision at the p≤ .005 level. The most notable factors increasing the
likelihood that a potential student will choose a two-year college are dependency
status, educational achievement, employment intensity, price and subsidy, and
the BPS variables. Students who are price conscious and have fewer resources
available for college are more likely to choose a two-year college. The notion
that two-year colleges are portals of access for many who could not or would
not attend college because of price constraints is confirmed by the data in this
study. In addition to price and net cost, a student’s commitment to complete
high school, moderate achievement in high school, lower achievement on
standardized admissions tests, desire to live off-campus, independent status, and
desire to hold a job while attending school make a student more likely to choose
a two-year college.
Conversely, a student ethnicity of Latino, desire to live on campus, ability to
pay high tuition and fees, paying a high net cost to attend, obtaining high
educational achievement in high school and on standardized admissions tests,
and the desire to meet with an advisor about academic plans are negatively
associated with a student’s likelihood of choosing a two-year college.
Implications To better understand the two-year /four-year college choice process, a
for Further longitudinal study would reveal whether certain variables hold constant over
Research time or whether and to what extent governmental and institutional policies may
impact the two-year college choice decision.
Other questions may also be explored in this regard. Do affirmative action
court decisions influence whether minorities choose a two-year college over a
four-year college? Do federal financial aid policies influence the role that price
and subsidy variables play in the decision to enroll in a two-year college?
In addition, the application of the existing models of choice (Chapman, 1984;
Hossler & Gallagher, 1987; Jackson, 1982; Hanson & Litten, 1982) to the two-
year college choice decision should focus on which variables influence the
different stages of the choice process. Use of a path analysis or structural
equation modeling (LISREL) could further isolate those variables that influence
each stage of the decision-making process.
10 Journal of Student Financial Aid Volume 39 • Number 1 • 2009
Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48