, Columnist
What If Everyone Applied to College?
Automatic applications could help narrow the U.S. educational achievement gap.
More needed.
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The U.S. has a college opportunity problem. University graduates earn higher lifetime wages and experience lower unemployment rates, but only about a third of the population obtains a bachelor’s degree by age 29. While a higher education isn’t the right life path for everyone, there’s evidence that lots of people who should be getting degrees aren’t getting them.
So here’s an idea: How about making college applications automatic?