Differences Between Latinx and White Students in College-Going Behaviors

Though Latinx students are going to college at an increasing rate, these students are still more likely to attend community college and less prestigious 4-year institutions than other groups. In an effort to understand this pattern, our study investigates how Latinx students prepare for college while in high school. We use nationally representative data to predict how Latinx students differ from White students when engaging in college-going behaviors. We find that, net of controls, Latinx students are less likely to take college entrance exams but submit more applications to college. We also find that increases in parental SES are associated with increases in college-going behaviors for White students, while Latinx students are consistent in engaging in college-going behaviors across parental SES. An increase in the number of friends planning to attend 4-year college is associated with greater engagement in some college-going behaviors for Latinx students, though less so than for White students. These results have implications for how researchers conceptualize the Latinx–White college enrollment gap.