Latinos: Aspiring, Applying and Choosing College

For this factsheet, Excelencia in Education aggregated data on Latino students’ educational aspirations, applications to college, and college choices from The High School Longitudinal Study of 2009. This study is a nationally representative longitudinal study that began with freshmen in 2009 and has followed them through secondary and postsecondary years.

College Aspirations
Latinos’ college aspirations increased while in high school. From freshman to junior year, the percentage of Latino students…

• Who didn’t have educational aspirations decreased from 25% to 12%.
• Who aspired to get some college, graduate, or go to graduate/professional education increased from 55% to 65%.

Applying to College
Latinos were slightly less likely to apply to college compared to other racial/ethnic groups and more likely to apply to only one college. Of high school completers,

• Almost 75% of Latino and 80% of all applied or enrolled in college four years after starting high school.
• Latinos were more likely to apply to just one college (43%), compared to White (40%), Black (37%), and Asian/Pacific Islander students (26%).

College Choices
Latinos were significantly more likely to chose an associate degree program over a bachelor or occupational training program. Of high school completers,

• Latinos are more likely to be enrolled in an associate degree program (41%), than a bachelor degree program (25%) or occupational training program (7%).
• Of all graduates, 34% were enrolled in an associate program, 42% in a bachelor program, and 5% in an occupational training program.