Do Expectations Make the Difference?: A Look at the Effect of Educational Expectations and Academic Performance on Enrollment in Post-Secondary Education

Littisha A. Bates, University of Cincinnati
Paul Anderson, University of Cincinnati

Using data from two waves of the Educational Longitudinal Study of 2002, we examine the impact of GPA and students’ own expectations on the probability of enrolling in post-secondary education. Specifically, we examine the potentially moderating effect of expectations on enrollment. We find that there are significant racial/ethnic differences in the probability of enrolling with Black and Hispanic origin students having lower probabilities and Asian origin students having higher probabilities than their white counterparts. Both GPA and expectations increase the probability of post-secondary enrollment. Our findings suggest that expectations help propel low achieving students into post-secondary enrollment. Our study adds to the current body of scholarship by moving pass Black/white comparisons and examining specific racial/ethnic groups instead of broad pan ethnic categories.