Repository of Third Way’s Higher Education Public Opinion Research

Series HG 19

Repository of Third Way’s Higher Education Public Opinion Research

Each year, nearly 20 million students attend colleges and universities across the United States, with taxpayers investing $120 billion to those institutions – making higher education one of the biggest investments someone can make in their lifetime. And yet, only half of students that start college ever finish (a statistic that becomes even more abysmal for low-income students and students of color), and students who don’t finish are three times as likely to default on their loans. Despite the stark realities of higher education’s leaky pipeline, advocates and policymakers continue to face roadblocks when talking about the need to strengthen accountability in higher education. To move the needle on these conversations, Third Way, in partnership with Global Strategy Group, has undertaken a multi-year, multi-round public opinion research project to learn how a variety of key audiences (including students, likely voters, parents, business leaders, institutional leaders, and more) talk about improving outcomes and holding institutions accountable. This series of research aims to highlight how stakeholders view our nation’s higher education system, and offers insight into how to shift the narrative from one that focuses solely on cost, to one that centers around the importance of getting all students both to and through college.


Topics
  • Photo of Third Way Education
    Third Way Education
Gainful Employment
Blog
Published August 18, 2022

Why the Gainful Employment Rule is a Political Winner

Header howthepandemicprioritizedhighered
Infographic
Published January 14, 2021

How the Pandemic Prioritized Higher Ed Value

Shutterstock 1834288402 HG
Memo
Published December 17, 2020

How COVID-19 Made Higher Education Value a Top Priority

Poll Highered Header
Polling
Published April 11, 2019

College Administrators Support Greater Accountability in Higher Ed

Cap Dipolma Book
Primer
Published September 17, 2018

How to Talk about Higher Education

Third Way in the news
Inside Higher Ed

10 Months In

Third Way in the news
Inside Higher Ed

‘We’re the Guinea Pigs’

Third Way in the news
Wall Street Journal

Why Democrats Have Stopped Talking About Free College

Third Way in the news
Inside Higher Ed

The Public's Support for (and Doubts About) Higher Ed

Third Way in the news
Inside Higher Ed

The Nuances of the Free College Debate

Third Way in the news
Inside Higher Ed

A Question of Trust

Third Way in the news
Inside Higher Ed

No DeVos at Republican Convention

Third Way in the news
Alabama Political Reporter

Opinions on higher education revealed in new survey