The McBee Institute of Higher Education provides online access to research papers and essays aimed at building knowledge and understanding of higher education and enhancing dialogue among researchers, institutional leaders, policymakers, and the public. The McBee IHE Research Projects Series (RPS) gives a sense of breadth and depth of professional interests of the Institute. It includes original research studies and thought essays by our faculty and their co-authors. Questions regarding the content of individual papers should be directed to the author(s). Ongoing Research Projects by Faculty College access and student preparation Investigating differences in social environments and disparities among secondary schools that affect the opportunities and expectations for high school students to access higher education. First-generation students Pressure points in higher education pipeline Undermatching Institutional research and assessment Guiding researchers on how to use, evaluate, and represent data and advanced analytics to inform decision making in higher education. Data analytics Academic tracking Survey research Institutional and system finance Shining a light on the practices and policies affecting transparency, accuracy, and accessibility of information pertaining to college costs and their impact on college students. Tuition transparency Institutional finance Higher education professionals Exploring questions of equity, academic freedom, and preparation for professional activities among tenure-track faculty. Pay and benefits Academic freedom Faculty satisfaction State education policy Focusing state-level policymaking process, as well as the impact of higher education policies on students and institutions. Economic development & education Roles of intermediary organizations Merit-based scholarships Benefits of higher education Drawing from a variety of perspectives and ways of assessing impact and value of the full higher education experience. Undergraduate experience
