Di Xu

Associate Professor, University of California, Irvine • Research Affiliate, CCRC

Di Xu is an associate professor at the University of California, Irvine. She researches the labor market returns to different degree programs and major areas in higher education. She is also conducting research to explore the impacts of educational programs, interventions, and instructional practice on student course performance, persistence, and degree completion.

Xu earned a PhD in economics and education from Teachers College, Columbia University. She received a BA in English literature from Peking University in China and holds an MA in sociology and education from Teachers College and an MA in applied linguistics from the University of Cambridge, UK.

Her research interests include economic returns to higher education, financial aid to higher education, and the use of quantitative research methods in evaluating the effects of governmental policies and projects on educational equity and efficiency.

December 2022

The Impact of Dual Enrollment on College Application Choice and Admission Success

Using a regression discontinuity approach and data from two cohorts of students in one state, this paper examines the effect of taking dual enrollment credits on the number of in-state public colleges students apply and are admitted to and the selectivity of those colleges.

April 2021

Happy Together? The Peer Effects of Dual Enrollment Students on Community College Student Outcomes

Using administrative data from a large state community college system, this paper examines whether being exposed to a higher percentage of dual enrollment peers influences non-dual enrollment enrollees’ performance in college courses.

March 2021

College Acceleration for All? Mapping Racial/Ethnic Gaps in Advanced Placement and Dual Enrollment Participation

This paper estimates the patterns and sources of White–Black and White–Hispanic enrollment gaps in Advancement Placement (AP) and dual enrollment programs across several thousand school districts and metropolitan areas in the United States.

October 2020

High School Dual Enrollment in Florida: Effects on College Outcomes by Race/Ethnicity and Course Modality

Using data on two cohorts of Florida students who started public high school in 2007 and 2012, this report analyzes dual enrollment course-taking and outcomes by racial/ethnic group (Black, Hispanic, White) and course modality (face-to-face on-college-campus, face-to-face off-campus, and online).

June 2018

Strengthening Transfer Paths to a Bachelor’s Degree: Identifying Effective Two-Year to Four-Year College Partnerships

Using National Student Clearinghouse data, this paper introduces a two-stage, input-adjusted, value-added analytic framework for identifying partnerships of two- and four-year institutions that are particularly effective in enabling students to transfer and earn bachelor’s degrees.

May 2018

How and Why Do Adjunct Instructors Affect Students’ Academic Outcomes? Evidence From Two-Year and Four-Year Colleges

Using student transcript records and detailed college instructor employment information from one state, this CAPSEE working paper examines whether adjunct faculty have different impacts on student academic outcomes than tenure-track and tenured faculty.

February 2018

Are Community College Transfer Students “A Good Bet” for 4-Year Admissions? Comparing Academic and Labor-Market Outcomes Between Transfer and Native 4-Year College Students

Using detailed administrative data from Virginia, this journal article examines whether community college “vertical transfer” students who resemble “native four-year” students in their accumulated college-level credits and performance at their point of entry into the four-year sector perform equally well in terms of both academic and labor market outcomes.

December 2017

How Effective Are Community College Remedial Math Courses for Students With the Lowest Math Skills?

This article examines a study on the effectiveness of remediation for community college students who are identified as having the lowest skills in math using transcript data from a state community college system.

December 2016

Assistance or Obstacle? The Impact of Different Levels of English Developmental Education on Underprepared Students in Community Colleges

This journal article examines the impacts of different levels of developmental reading and writing on students’ academic outcomes.

October 2016

Understanding the Relative Value of Alternative Pathways in Postsecondary Education: Evidence From the State of Virginia

This book chapter replicates and extends analyses completed in other statewide studies and estimates returns to credentials and credit accumulation for first-time college students who enrolled in the Virginia Community College System (VCCS) in 2004–2005 using a classic Mincerian approach.

June 2016

Does Developmental Education Improve Labor Market Outcomes? Evidence From Two States

Using longitudinal student-unit record data linked to wage record data, this paper estimates the labor market returns to developmental credits versus college-level credits in two states.

April 2016

How and Why Does Two-Year College Entry Influence Baccalaureate Aspirants’ Academic and Labor Market Outcomes?

Using detailed administrative data from Virginia, this CAPSEE working paper examines how and why the community college pathway to a baccalaureate influences students’ degree attainment and short-term labor market performance.

February 2016

Predicting Online Student Outcomes From a Measure of Course Quality

This paper introduces an online course quality rubric addressing four quality areas, and it examines the relationship between each quality area and student end-of-semester performance.

January 2016

Examining the Earnings Trajectories of Community College Students Using a Piecewise Growth Curve Modeling Approach

This paper introduces a piecewise growth approach to analyzing labor market outcomes of students, and it discusses how insights gained from the approach can be used to strengthen econometric analyses of labor market returns.

December 2015

What About Certificates? Evidence on the Labor Market Returns to Non-Degree Community College Awards in Two States

Based on administrative data from two state community college systems, this paper explores the relationship between earning a certificate and students’ post-college earnings and employment status.

September 2015

Noncredit Education in Community College: Students, Course Enrollments, and Academic Outcomes

Using data on students at nine community colleges, this paper examines enrollment patterns and outcomes of students who take noncredit courses, including those who intend to transition to the for-credit sector.

October 2014

Three Accelerated Developmental Education Programs: Features, Student Outcomes, and Implications

This study examines three developmental acceleration programs—two in English and one in math—and finds that accelerated students were more likely to complete the relevant college-level course within 3 years.

September 2014

Redesigning Arithmetic for Student Success: Supporting Faculty to Teach in New Ways

This chapter describes a promising approach to teaching developmental arithmetic and prealgebra and presents findings on a faculty support network that helped instructors adopt new teaching strategies.

September 2014

Adaptability to Online Learning: Differences Across Types of Students and Academic Subject Areas

This study examines how well students adapt to the online environment in terms of their ability to persist and earn strong grades in online courses relative to their ability to do so in face-to-face courses.

May 2014

Accelerating the Integrated Instruction of Developmental Reading and Writing at Chabot College

This paper compares the academic outcomes of students at Chabot College who participated in an accelerated, one-semester developmental English course and those who enrolled in a two-semester sequence.

December 2013

Examining the Effectiveness of Online Learning Within a Community College System: An Instrumental Variable Approach

Using an instrumental variable technique, the authors estimate the impact of online versus face-to-face course delivery on student course performance, as indicated by course persistence and final course grade.

September 2011

The Effectiveness of Distance Education Across Virginia’s Community Colleges: Evidence From Introductory College-Level Math and English Courses

This study used a statewide administrative dataset to estimate the effects of taking one's first college-level math or English course online rather than face to face, in terms of both course retention and course performance.

March 2011

Focus Areas

Di Xu

The Impact of Dual Enrollment on College Application Choice and Admission Success

Happy Together? The Peer Effects of Dual Enrollment Students on Community College Student Outcomes

College Acceleration for All? Mapping Racial/Ethnic Gaps in Advanced Placement and Dual Enrollment Participation

High School Dual Enrollment in Florida: Effects on College Outcomes by Race/Ethnicity and Course Modality

Strengthening Transfer Paths to a Bachelor’s Degree: Identifying Effective Two-Year to Four-Year College Partnerships

How and Why Do Adjunct Instructors Affect Students’ Academic Outcomes? Evidence From Two-Year and Four-Year Colleges

Are Community College Transfer Students “A Good Bet” for 4-Year Admissions? Comparing Academic and Labor-Market Outcomes Between Transfer and Native 4-Year College Students

How Effective Are Community College Remedial Math Courses for Students With the Lowest Math Skills?

Assistance or Obstacle? The Impact of Different Levels of English Developmental Education on Underprepared Students in Community Colleges

Understanding the Relative Value of Alternative Pathways in Postsecondary Education: Evidence From the State of Virginia

Does Developmental Education Improve Labor Market Outcomes? Evidence From Two States

How and Why Does Two-Year College Entry Influence Baccalaureate Aspirants’ Academic and Labor Market Outcomes?

Predicting Online Student Outcomes From a Measure of Course Quality

Examining the Earnings Trajectories of Community College Students Using a Piecewise Growth Curve Modeling Approach

What About Certificates? Evidence on the Labor Market Returns to Non-Degree Community College Awards in Two States

Noncredit Education in Community College: Students, Course Enrollments, and Academic Outcomes

Three Accelerated Developmental Education Programs: Features, Student Outcomes, and Implications

Redesigning Arithmetic for Student Success: Supporting Faculty to Teach in New Ways

Adaptability to Online Learning: Differences Across Types of Students and Academic Subject Areas

Accelerating the Integrated Instruction of Developmental Reading and Writing at Chabot College

Examining the Effectiveness of Online Learning Within a Community College System: An Instrumental Variable Approach

The Effectiveness of Distance Education Across Virginia’s Community Colleges: Evidence From Introductory College-Level Math and English Courses

Online and Hybrid Course Enrollment and Performance in Washington State Community and Technical Colleges

Online Learning in the Virginia Community College System

Recent Publications

The Impact of Dual Enrollment on College Application Choice and Admission Success

Happy Together? The Peer Effects of Dual Enrollment Students on Community College Student Outcomes

College Acceleration for All? Mapping Racial/Ethnic Gaps in Advanced Placement and Dual Enrollment Participation

High School Dual Enrollment in Florida: Effects on College Outcomes by Race/Ethnicity and Course Modality