Between Two Fields: US Public Master’s Institutions — Striving for Prestige or Equity?

Enrollment Management and Admissions Policies at Regional Public Universities

“…Most have decreased their admissions test scores and increased their acceptance rates; undergraduate populations have mostly increased while graduate populations have decreased and out‐of‐state enrollment has remained somewhat consistent over time; and restricted and unrestricted sources of institutional aid have increased significantly, as have in‐state and out‐of‐state tuition rates, while state appropriations have largely decreased. Many of these findings are inconsistent with the prior literature, such as the striving mechanisms of RPUs to recruit additional out‐of‐state students and increase academic selectivity (Cantwell, 2015; Jaquette et al., 2016; Posselt et al., 2012), while others suggest broader issues with access and diversity using metrics (e.g., Pell recipients and underrepresented minorities) in our other analyses (see Chapter 2 and DeMonbrun et al., 2019; Warshaw et al., 2019).…”

“…Variables. We categorized the variables of interest for this study into three groups, based on our prior analyses (DeMonbrun, Warshaw et al, 2019): (1) admissions selectivity, (2) institutional characteristics, and (3) institutional finances and resources.…”

“…We categorized the variables of interest for this study into three groups, based on our prior analyses (DeMonbrun, Warshaw, & McNaughtan, 2019; Warshaw et al., 2019): (1) admissions selectivity, (2) institutional characteristics, and (3) institutional finances and resources. Admissions selectivity represents those shifts in the academic profile of an institution and consists of two variables, 75th percentile SAT scores for each incoming fall cohort and the acceptance rate (the percentage of all applicants who were admitted to the institution).…”

“…Whether RPUs are striving or not, many could seek to enhance their graduate student enrollment as part of their efforts to become more research‐intensive (striving‐oriented) or to expand their operations and overall number of FTE students (capacity‐building). Undergraduates tend to subsidize graduate education through their tuition and fees (Warshaw, McNaughtan, & DeMonbrun, 2019). When such funding dynamics result in higher tuition prices, equity may be further constrained due to price sensitivities/elasticities among students and families from disadvantaged backgrounds.…”

Conclusion: Appraising Asset‐Based Themes for Policy and Practice

“…A growing body of evidence suggests that RPUs are more missioncentered than what prior research and news media reports indicate (Campbell, Jimenez, & Arrozal, 2019;McClure, 2018;Orphan, 2018;Warshaw, McNaughtan, & DeMonbrun, 2019). Mission-centeredness is reflected in commitments to access and equity, supportive teaching practices focused on diverse groups of undergraduate students, and, among other elements, strong civic engagement.…”