Defying popular imagination, students overwhelmingly attend college close to home, and, as a result, public policies based on the assumption that students can “shop around” for colleges across the country need to be updated to better reflect the lived experiences of today’s college students as well as the colleges that serve them.
In this two-part series, our latest research uncovers a greatly under-explored area of higher education – the crucial role geography plays in shaping college opportunities. Contrary to popular belief, most American undergraduates stay close to home for their education, with 4 in 5 students choosing in-state colleges.
