Series of Reports Find Common Recruiting Practice Perpetuate Bias, But Crucial for College Access of Underrepresented Students

The Institute for College Access & Success (TICAS) partnered with University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) Associate Professor Ozan Jaquette, University of Arizona Assistant Professor Karina Salazar, data scientist Crystal Han, and UCLA Phd student Patricia Martin to release a series of three comprehensive reports that explain and analyze the currently unregulated business of generating student prospects (“student lists”) for colleges across the United States to purchase and use for recruiting.

Geodemographics of Student List Purchases: A First Look analyzes actual student list purchases made from the College Board by public universities while The Student List Business: Primer and Market Dynamics provides insight into of how student lists work, and the current landscape for student list data. The reports find that although ‘student lists’ perpetuate harmful biases and exclusion in recruiting, they also play an important role for college access, especially for historically underrepresented students. The third report, Student List Policy: Problems, Regulations, and a Solution explores policy options to address the student list business.