The Price of Mission Complexity: A National Study of the Impact of Community College Baccalaureate Adoption on Tuition and Fees

The traditional mission of community colleges is rooted in the provision of sub-baccalaureate education at a low price, but a total of 19 states have changed their legislative policies and currently allow community colleges to offer community college baccalaureate (CCB) degree programs. This study examines the impact of CCB adoption on the tuition and fees at CCB-adopting institutions. We leverage a novel national dataset and employ a difference-in-differences regression approach to find that CCB adoption is associated with increases in tuition and fees at public community colleges.