Developing a Multimetric Accountability System for Postsecondary Institutions

This brief examines the impact of using a system based on multiple metrics that requires institutions to pass three out of four thresholds for student loan default, student loan repayment, program completion, and postcollege earnings. Currently, a very high loan default rate is the only student outcome that disqualifies institutions from the federal student aid system. Relying on multiple metrics diminishes the risk of institutions manipulating their outcomes and requires satisfactory performance in more than one area, while allowing flexibility for differing programs, missions, and circumstances. These metrics illustrate the importance of a range of choices, including weighting default rates by the share of students borrowing; focusing on the share of debt retired as opposed to the share of students retiring any debt; setting different completion thresholds for four-year, two-year, and less-than-two-year institutions; and monitoring indicators of the distribution of earnings rather than just graduates' average earnings, with different thresholds for different types of institutions. A related report on this subject provides analysis of other constructive adjustments (Baum, Blom, and Cohn 2022). These adjustments can have a major impact on which institutions pass and which institutions fail the accountability test. It concludes that minimum standards should apply to all institutions regardless of their student bodies, but thresholds, particularly for earnings and completion rates, should differ by program length. [For the related report, "Using Multiple Metrics to Strengthen Institutional Accountability. Research Report," see ED620602.]