ConnecticutConnecticut

State Summary Report Card (PDF)
Complete State Report Card (PDF)

Performance Categories

Preparation

A

Improved

Connecticut performs well in preparing its young people for college, but there are large gaps by ethnicity.

  • Connecticut is among the top states in student performance on Advanced Placement tests.
  • However, only 81% of Hispanics have a high school credential, compared with 95% of whites.

Participation

C-

Improved

College opportunities for Connecticut residents are only fair.

  • The likelihood of enrolling in college by age 19 is high, but a low percentage of working-age adults (4 in 100) are enrolled in higher education.
  • Twenty-seven percent of Hispanic young adults are enrolled in college, compared with 50% of whites.

Affordability

F

Not Improved

Higher education has become less affordable for students and their families.

  • Poor and working-class families must devote 43% of their income, even after aid, to pay for costs at public four-year colleges.
  • For every dollar in Pell Grant aid to students, the state spends 74 cents.

Completion

B-

Improved

Connecticut performs fairly well in awarding certificates and degrees relative to the number of students enrolled.

  • Sixty-three percent of college students complete a bachelor's degree within six years.
  • However, only 53% of Hispanics graduate within six years, compared with 64% of whites.

Benefits

A-

Improved

A very large proportion of residents have a bachelor's degree, but there are substantial gaps by ethnicity.

  • Thirteen percent of Hispanics have a bachelor's degree, compared with 41% of whites—one of the largest gaps in the nation.
  • If all racial/ethnic groups had the same educational attainment and earnings as whites, total annual personal income in the state would be about $8 billion higher.

Learning

I

Like all states, Connecticut receives an "Incomplete" in Learning because there is not sufficient data to allow meaningful state-by-state comparisons.

 

Change Over Time: Key Indicators

The following reflects Connecticut’s performance and progress since the early 1990s on several key indicators.

Preparation

The percentage of young adults in Connecticut who earn a high school diploma has increased slightly since the early 1990s. High school completion is well above the U.S. average but slightly below the top-performing states.

Participation

College enrollment of young adults in Connecticut has improved substantially since the early 1990s. The state is slightly below the national average and well below the top states in the percentage of young adults enrolled.

The enrollment of working-age adults, relative to the number of residents without a bachelor’s degree, has declined substantially in Connecticut—as it has nationally and in the best-performing states. The percentage attending college in Connecticut is well below the U.S. average and the top states.

Affordability

The share of family income, even after financial aid, needed to pay for college has risen substantially. To attend public two- and four-year colleges in Connecticut, students and families pay more than the U.S. average and more than those in the best-performing states.

Completion

The number of undergraduate credentials and degrees awarded in Connecticut, relative to the number of students enrolled, has increased since the early 1990s. Connecticut performs near the U.S. average but below the top states on this measure.

Benefits

The percentage of residents who have a bachelor’s degree has increased. Connecticut is well above the U.S. average and the same as top states.