College or an equivalent postsecondary credential remain the hallmark of “successful” investment in human capital and preparation for a high-skilled U.S. labor market, yet college access and completion rates are highly unequal by race, family economic background, and other demographic indicators. Moreover, the cost of college has skyrocketed such that student debt burdens threaten to make investments in postsecondary education less economically valuable and less viable for lower-income students than in the past. Equitable Growth is growing the evidence base for how postsecondary education serves as both an accelerator of and a mediator of economic inequalities, and looking for solutions that make lifelong investments in human capital via postsecondary education viable for all.
Featured work
In Conversation with Omari Swinton
September 24, 2025
September 24, 2025
U.S. labor markets require a new approach to higher education
January 14, 2021
January 14, 2021
A college degree is not the solution to U.S. wage inequality
July 20, 2020
July 20, 2020
The rising number of U.S. households with burdensome student debt calls for a federal response
October 21, 2020
October 21, 2020
Diversity in Economics video series uplifts diverse voices and research in economics and social sciences
January 5, 2023
January 5, 2023
Explore Content in Post-secondary Education68
Promote economic and racial justice: Eliminate student loan debt and establish a right to higher education across the United States
February 18, 2020
February 18, 2020
Higher education is not the U.S. mobility engine it could be because admissions practices are rigging the system
November 7, 2019
November 7, 2019
The student loan crisis is fueled by a weak labor market
April 26, 2017
April 26, 2017
College may not be the great equalizer across race and ethnicity
March 13, 2017
March 13, 2017
How other nations handle student debt and what the United States could learn from them
July 14, 2016
July 14, 2016
Seminar Series: Student loans and the labor market (Invitation Only)
July 13, 2016 12:15PM - 1:30PM
Student loans and the labor market: Evidence from merit aid programs
April 5, 2016
April 5, 2016
College and intergenerational mobility: New evidence from administrative data
April 4, 2016
April 4, 2016
The impact of need-based financial aid reform on the decision to attend college
April 4, 2016
April 4, 2016
What’s your college degree worth? It may depend on your parents’ income
March 9, 2016
March 9, 2016
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