Higher Education Equity: 2-Year Bachelor's Degrees Show Promise in Closing the Latino Gap

Just as it happens in almost any aspect of life in America, Hispanics are building a major presence in higher education. For instance, a recent study by the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center revealed that enrollment by Hispanics is outpacing the national average. (Credit: Unsplash.com/Alexis Brown)

Community College Baccalaureate (CCB) programs could contribute to narrowing the higher education gap for Latino students, according to a study published on Tuesday by UCLA's Latino Policy & Politics Institute.

CCB programs, which allow community colleges to offer two-year bachelor's degree options, began in 2014 in certain institutions in California, following the passage of a law aimed at increasing degree attainment.

These programs provided students with an opportunity to pursue a degree in the state, and have particularly benefited the Hispanic population. "Latinos in California have historically faced disparities in access to and attainment of bachelor's degrees compared to the state's non-Latino population," the report specified.

UCLA analyzed the impact among Latino students of these programs based on data from students enrolled in the first five cohorts, or groups, of CCB programs.

"The year-two graduation rate is high: Among Latino students enrolled in CCB programs, 64% graduated and obtained their bachelor's degrees within two years after officially being admitted to complete their upper-division coursework," the report underscored.

The study, which included a survey within students, also found that 35% of California CCB Latino graduates and 30% of California CCB non-Latino graduates reported taking out student loans. Both rates were much lower than the overall California loan rate among both Latino and non-Latino college graduates (46%).

Another key finding was that Latino CCB graduates reported higher rates of employment (94%) and employment in California (92%) relative to non-Latino CCB graduates (93% and 88%, respectively). Also, Latino graduates who secured employment reported earning $22,600 more per year than they did before starting their CCB program.

"California's CCB programs may be an accessible and affordable public pathway to bachelor's degree attainment for Latino students," the institute concluded, while also recommending the government to "ensure equitable access and opportunities for Latino students to enroll in California's CCB programs."

The Latino Gap for College Completion in the U.S.

The gap in degree completion between Latinos and their White peers, accordin to Excelencia in Education. (Credit: Excelencia in Education)

In California, 22% of Latino adults aged 25 and older had earned associate degrees or higher, compared to 56% of white non-Hispanics of the same age, according to data from a 2021 survey from the U.S. Census Bureau, analyzed by Excelencia in Education.

This organization, which seeks to boost Latino inclusion in college, has figures showing that, at a national level, the gap in degree completion between Latinos and their White peers is similar (28% for Latinos v. 48% White non-Hispanics), and has been increasing in the last years.

The gap in degree completion is higher in four-year institutions, according to Excelencia in Education. (Credit: Excelencia in Education)

Latinos' graduation rates are lower than those of their White non-Hispanic peers in the United States, although the gap is lower in shorter educational programs.

At two-year institutions, Hispanics' graduation rate was 5 percentage points lower than that of their White non-Hispanic peers, while at four-year institutions, Hispanics' graduation rate was 13 percentage points lower than that of their White non-Hispanic peers in the United States.

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