Oregon
Student Access & Success
Oregon’s four-year institutions receive an average grade in this area, scoring very close to the national medians on completion rate, retention rate, and the percentage of undergraduates receiving Pell Grants. The state’s two-year institutions receive a poor grade, with particularly low scores in credentials produced per 100 full-time equivalent undergraduates and completion rate.
Efficiency & Cost-Effectiveness
Oregon receives a very good grade in this area for four- year institutions, with a cost per completion ($52,632) and state and local funding per completion ($24,293) that rank in the top five states nationally. However, Oregon’s two-year institutions receive a very low grade, with a cost per completion ($92,368) and state and local funding per completion ($66,252) in the bottom five states nationally.
Meeting Labor Market Demand
The median wage of an Oregon bachelor’s degree holder is approximately $19,700 (or 63%) more than the median wage of a high school graduate; the overall unemployment rate for a bachelor’s degree holder is about 4.5 points lower. The median wage of an associate’s degree holder is approximately $9,500 (or 31%) more than the median wage of a high school graduate; the overall unemployment rate is about 2 points lower.
Transparency & Accountability
Oregon receives a good score for its public accountability resources but overall the state performs below average in this area because the state does not measure student learning outcomes or track graduate performance in the labor market.
Policy Environment
Oregon gets a middling grade for its policy environment. The state’s higher education plan includes goals for student outcomes, both graduation rates and labor market outcomes. Oregon publishes course equivalency guides for individual classes to aid in course transfer. The state does not have an outcomes-based funding system.
Innovation
“Oregon Colleges Online” is a portal that provides information about online offerings at the state’s two-year institutions. While some of Oregon’s four-year universities offer online degrees—Oregon State’s Ecampus is a good example—there is no effort to coordinate across campuses. Regarding new providers, Oregon has a highly restrictive regulatory environment across the board, resulting in a very low grade.
Report Card
Compare with
Four-Year Institutions
OR Nat'l| Student Access & Success | C |
|---|
| Percentage of Pell Grant Recipients | 33.6 | 30.8 |
|---|---|---|
| Retention Rate | 78.3 | 77.9 |
| Completion Rate | 53.7 | 54.5 |
| Completions per 100 FTE Students | 20.6 | 19.7 |
| Risk-Adjusted Completion Points (5-point Scale) | 3 | |
| Complete College America | * |
| Efficiency & Cost-Effectiveness | A |
|---|
| Cost Per Completion | $52,632 | $68,140 |
|---|---|---|
| State and Local Funding Per Completion | $24,293 | $41,198 |
| State, Local, and Tuition Funding Per Completion | $58,758 | $76,932 |
| Cost Per Completion and Public Funding Combined Measure (5-point scale) | 5 |
| Meeting Labor Market Demand | D |
|---|
| BA vs. HS Wage Gap (Overall) | $19,648 | $17,881 |
|---|---|---|
| BA vs. HS Wage Ratio (Overall) | 163.4 | 156.0 |
| BA vs. HS Wage Gap (25–34) | $12,655 | $12,703 |
| BA vs. HS Wage Ratio (25–34) | 146.3 | 149.9 |
| BA vs. HS Unemployment Gap (Overall) | 4.5 | 4.0 |
| BA vs. HS Unemployment Ratio (Overall) | 1.8 | 2.1 |
| BA vs. HS Unemployment Gap (25–34) | 5.8 | 7.1 |
| BA vs. HS Unemployment Ratio (25–34) | 2.0 | 2.9 |
| Transparency & Accountability | D |
|---|
| Transparency—Public Accountability (5-point Scale) | 4 | |
|---|---|---|
| Transparency—Consumer Information (3-point Scale) | 1 | |
| Does the State Report Labor Market Outcomes? | false | |
| Labor Market Outcomes (4-point Scale) | 0 | |
| Does the State Report Student Learning Outcomes? | false | |
| Student Learning Outcomes (3-point Scale) | 0 |
Two-Year Institutions
OR Nat'l| Student Access & Success | D |
|---|
| Percentage of Pell Grant Recipients | 53.5 | 46.9 |
|---|---|---|
| Retention Rate | 58.0 | 58.6 |
| Completion Rate | 14.4 | 20.5 |
| Completions Per 100 FTE Undergraduates | 12.8 | 16.8 |
| Risk-Adjusted Completion Points (5-point Scale) | 2 |
| Efficiency & Cost-Effectiveness | F |
|---|
| Cost Per Completion | $92,368 | $57,210 |
|---|---|---|
| State and Local Funding Per Completion | $66,252 | $35,476 |
| State, Local, and Tuition Funding Per Completion | $93,933 | $52,512 |
| Cost Per Completion and Public Funding Combined MeasureCombined Measure (5-point Scale) | 1 |
| Meeting Labor Market Demand | D |
|---|
| AA vs. HS Wage Gap (Overall) | $9,520 | $8,545 |
|---|---|---|
| AA vs. HS Wage Ratio (Overall) | 130.7 | 126.1 |
| AA vs. HS Wage Gap (25–34) | $5,180 | $6,595 |
| AA vs. HS Wage Ratio (25–34) | 118.9 | 125.0 |
| AA vs. HS Unemployment Gap (Overall) | 1.7 | 2.7 |
| AA vs. HS Unemployment Ratio (Overall) | 1.2 | 1.5 |
| AA vs. HS Unemployment Gap (25–34) | 3.0 | 4.9 |
| AA vs. HS Unemployment Ratio (25–34) | 1.34 | 1.84 |
| Transparency & Accountability | F |
|---|
| Transparency—Public Accountability (5-point Scale) | 2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Transparency—Consumer Information (3-point Scale) | 0 | |
| Does the State Report Labor Market Outcomes? | false | |
| Labor Market Outcomes (4-point Scale) | 0 | |
| Does the State Report Student Learning Outcomes? | false | |
| Student Learning Outcomes (3-point Scale) | 0 |
State
OR Nat'l| Policy Environment | C |
|---|
| State Goals (6-point Scale) | 3 | |
|---|---|---|
| Does the State Have Outcomes-Based Funding? | false | |
| Four-Year Outcomes-Based Funding (3-point Scale) | 0 | |
| Two-Years Outcomes-Based Funding (3-point Scale) | 0 | |
| Does the State Have a Credit Transfer Policy? | true | |
| Credit Transfer Policy (5-point Scale) | 4 |
| Innovation: Openness to Providers | F |
|---|
| Numerical Openness to New Providers Grade | 43% | |
|---|---|---|
| Regulatory Jurisdiction | 50% | |
| Financial Burden | 40% | |
| Approval Process Burden | 40% |
| Innovation: Online Learning | D |
|---|
| Numerical Online Learning Grade | 28.6 | |
|---|---|---|
| Online Learning Score (7-point Scale) | 2 |
State Facts at a Glance
- Number of Public Four-Year Institutions 8
- Number of Public Two-Year Institutions 17
- Number of Students Served by Public Four-Year Institutions 66023
- Number of Students Served by Public Two-Year Institutions 73563