Advisor Value-Added and Student Outcomes: Evidence from Randomly Assigned College Advisors

40 Pages Posted: 11 Nov 2019

See all articles by Serena Canaan

Serena Canaan

Simon Fraser University

Antoine Deeb

University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB)

Pierre Mouganie

American University of Beirut

Multiple version iconThere are 2 versions of this paper

Date Written: October 30, 2019

Abstract

The substantial rise in the college wage premium has led to large increases in postsecondary enrollment rates. However, many students fail to complete their degrees, and few invest in majors with the highest earnings potential such as those in STEM fields. To help students navigate the complexities of college, policymakers are increasingly advocating for the use of support services such as academic advising and mentoring. As of yet, much of the existing evidence on college advising comes from studies that focus on whether access to advising improves student outcomes. However, little is known about whether quality of advising impacts students' success. This paper provides the first causal evidence on the impact of college advisor quality on student outcomes. To do so, we exploit a unique setting where students are randomly assigned to faculty advisors during their first year of college. We find that higher advisor value-added (VA) substantially improves freshman year GPA, time to complete freshman year and four-year graduation rates. Additionally, higher advisor VA increases high-ability students' likelihood of enrolling and graduating with a STEM degree. Our results indicate that allocating resources towards improving the quality of academic advising may play a key role in promoting college success.

Keywords: College Completion, STEM, Academic Advising, Value-Added

JEL Classification: I23, I24, J16

Suggested Citation

Canaan, Serena and Deeb, Antoine and Mouganie, Pierre, Advisor Value-Added and Student Outcomes: Evidence from Randomly Assigned College Advisors (October 30, 2019). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3478331 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3478331

Serena Canaan

Simon Fraser University ( email )

8888 University Drive
Burnaby, British Columbia V5A 1S6
Canada

Antoine Deeb

University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) ( email )

South Hall 5504
Santa Barbara, CA 93106
United States

Pierre Mouganie (Contact Author)

American University of Beirut ( email )

Beirut, 0236
Lebanon

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