Clive Belfield

Professor of Economics, Queens College, City University of New York • Research Affiliate, CCRC

Clive Belfield is a professor of economics at Queens College, City University of New York. He received his PhD in economics from the University of Exeter in England.

Belfield was a project lead for Stackable Credentials Within Three State Systems: Award Patterns and Their Labor Market Value and the Center for Analysis of Postsecondary Education and Employment‘s (CAPSEE) North Carolina study. He is also affiliated with the Center for the Analysis of Postsecondary Readiness (CAPR).

Belfield’s most recent book is The Price We Pay: The Economic and Social Costs of Inadequate Education. He has authored numerous articles on the economics of education and has served as a consultant to the World Bank, the U.S. Department of Education, and the British Government, as well as nonprofit foundations and education think tanks.

March 2024

How HEER Funding Rescued Community Colleges From the Pandemic

Using financial data from IPEDS, this ARCC Network brief examines what happened to community college revenue and student aid during the pandemic and assesses the importance of Higher Education Emergency Relief (HEER) funding for community colleges and their students.

November 2023

How Important Are Community Colleges in Promoting STEM?

This report argues that a more inclusive definition of STEM that accounts for STEM-oriented technical training programs would better represent the contribution community colleges make to STEM education and the STEM workforce.

February 2023

How Can Community Colleges Afford to Offer Dual Enrollment College Courses to High School Students at a Discount?

Using three case studies, this paper examines the conditions under which dual enrollment programming could be made sustainable through efficiency gains, even for colleges that charge discounted tuition (or none at all)

October 2020

The Economics of Guided Pathways: Cost, Funding, and Value

Drawing on data from 12 community colleges, this paper analyzes the resources required to implement guided pathways reforms and examines their feasibility and affordability, as well as their value for students.

October 2020

Who Should Take College-Level Courses? Impact Findings From an Evaluation of a Multiple Measures Assessment Strategy

This report describes impact findings from an evaluation of multiple measures assessment and placement at seven State University of New York (SUNY) community colleges.

November 2019

The Labor Market Returns to For-Profit Higher Education: Evidence for Transfer Students

This paper examines the labor market gains for students who enrolled at for-profit colleges after beginning their postsecondary education in community college.

September 2019

The False Dichotomy Between Academic Learning and Occupational Skills

This essay compares broad academic and vocational program goals, embodied skills, tasks, and jobs, with a focus primarily on community college students.

July 2019

Early Momentum Metrics: Leading Indicators for Community College Improvement

In this brief, the authors examine how well nine measures of students’ progress in their first year predict student completion in subsequent years, and thus how suitable these early momentum metrics are as leading indicators of the effectiveness of institutional reforms.

June 2019

Humanities and Liberal Arts Education at Community College: How It Affects Transfer and Four-Year College Outcomes

Using transcript-level data from two community college state systems and a nationally representative survey, this short report examines how course-taking in humanities and liberal arts at community colleges affects transfer and outcomes at four-year colleges.

June 2019

Humanities and Liberal Arts Education Across America’s Colleges: How Much Is There?

This short report provides a systematic accounting of the provision of humanities and liberal arts education at public colleges in the United States, including community colleges.

September 2018

KCTCS Enhancing Programs for IT Certification (EPIC)

This report evaluates the implementation and impacts of Enhancing Programs for IT Certification (EPIC), a program that aims to expand access to computer and medical information technology credentials at six Kentucky community colleges.

September 2018

Multiple Measures Placement Using Data Analytics: An Implementation and Early Impacts Report

This report from the Center for the Analysis for Postsecondary Readiness (CAPR) examines implementation of a multiple measures placement system at seven State University of New York community colleges and presents results on first-term impacts.

July 2018

Toward Better College Course Placement: A Guide to Launching a Multiple Measures Assessment System

Drawing on lessons from 10 Minnesota and Wisconsin colleges that piloted multiple measures systems for placing students into developmental and college-level courses, this guide provides recommendations for other colleges interested in implementing or testing their own multiple measures systems.

June 2018

The Impact of Occupational Licensing on Labor Market Outcomes of College-Educated Workers

This paper identifies the effects of licenses on a set of labor market outcomes for the college-educated workforce using newly available national Current Population Survey data merged with data from the U.S. Department of Labor on state-level, occupation-specific licensing requirements.

November 2017

Stackable Credentials: Do They Have Labor Market Value?

Using national, survey, and college-system-level datasets, this paper estimates the association between stackable credentials and earnings, finding weakly positive and inconsistent gains from these award combinations.

May 2017

Is It Really Cheaper to Start at a Community College? The Consequences of Inefficient Transfer for Community College Students Seeking Bachelor’s Degrees

Using data from two state systems, this paper examines whether it is more efficient for bachelor’s degree seekers to start at a two-year college.

April 2017

Stackable Credentials: Awards for the Future?

This paper addresses empirical challenges in identifying stackable credentials, distinguishes three types of stackable awards, and estimates the number of persons who earn such awards. It then discusses the utility of these awards in meeting labor market demands and needs of students.

April 2017

Model Specifications for Estimating Labor Market Returns to Associate Degrees: How Robust Are Fixed Effects Estimates?

This CAPSEE working paper reviews results from fixed effects models of the earnings gains from completing an associate degree and compares them with ordinary least squares model estimates.

March 2017

The Labor Market Returns to Sub-Baccalaureate College: A Review

This CAPSEE working paper and accompanying brief review recent evidence from eight states on the labor market returns to credit accumulation, certificates, and associate degrees from community colleges using large-scale, statewide administrative datasets.

August 2016

Matching Talents to Careers: From Self-Directed to Guided Pathways

This chapter in the book Matching Students to Opportunity examines the matching process between students and college programs or majors, primarily in community colleges.

June 2016

Momentum: The Academic and Economic Value of a 15-Credit First-Semester Course Load for College Students in Tennessee

Using student-level data from the Tennessee Board of Regents, this paper explores the academic and economic consequences of taking higher or lower credit loads in the first semester and first year of college.

April 2016

Is Corequisite Remediation Cost-Effective? Early Findings From Tennessee

This brief examines the corequisite remediation model as it was implemented in Tennessee community colleges in fall 2015 and finds that it is more cost-effective than the prerequisite remediation model the colleges formerly used.

November 2015

Weathering the Great Recession With Human Capital? Evidence on Labor Market Returns to Education From Arkansas

This CAPSEE working paper examines the returns to education for large numbers of young workers in Arkansas over the period before, during, and after the Great Recession.

October 2015

The Labor Market Returns to Math in Community College: Evidence Using the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002

This CAPSEE working paper examines the returns to math courses relative to the returns to other courses for students who started their postsecondary education at community college.

July 2015

Improving the Accuracy of Remedial Placement

This practitioner packet summarizes CCRC’s research on remedial placement at community colleges and considers how including students’ high school transcript information in the assignment process could improve placement accuracy.

June 2015

Efficiency Gains in Community Colleges: Two Areas for Further Investigation

This paper reviews how an increase in contingent faculty and an increase in class size might affect efficiency at community colleges.

May 2015

Calculating the Costs of Remedial Placement Testing

This publication presents findings on the costs of remedial placement testing at three colleges, and it provides guidance on how other colleges could undertake similar analyses.

March 2015

The Labor Market Returns to Math Courses in Community College

Using matched college transcript and earnings data on over 80,000 students entering community college during the 2000s, this CAPSEE working paper examines the returns to math courses.

February 2015

What About the Non-Completers? The Labor Market Returns to Progress in Community College

Using a novel method for linking non-completers with completers, this paper calculates the labor market returns to programs of study, accounting both for those who obtain an award and those who do not.

November 2014

The Medium-Term Labor Market Returns to Community College Awards: Evidence From North Carolina

In this study, the authors examine medium-term returns to diplomas, certificates, and degrees for first-time college students who enrolled in the North Carolina Community College System in 2002–03.

September 2014

Can Community Colleges Afford to Improve Completion? Measuring the Costs and Efficiency Effects of College Reforms

This paper introduces a model that uses transcript data matched to credit-level cost data and funding formulae to calculate the implications for efficiency of reforms intended to improve completion rates.

September 2014

Remedial Placement Testing in Community Colleges: What Resources Are Required, and What Does It Cost?

Using detailed data from three community colleges, the authors of this study employ the ingredients method to estimate the costs to colleges and students of remedial placement systems at community college.

September 2014

Evaluating For-Profit Higher Education: Evidence From the Education Longitudinal Study

Using the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002, this CAPSEE working paper evaluates the postsecondary and labor market outcomes of students who attended for-profit colleges.

September 2014

Improving the Targeting of Treatment: Evidence From College Remediation

This paper uses administrative data and a rich predictive model to examine the accuracy of remedial screening tests, used either with or instead of high school transcript data to determine remedial assignment.

May 2014

Can Community Colleges Continue to Do More With Less?

In light of cost-cutting practices used by community colleges today, this article argues that the emphasis of policy and practice should be on improving efficiency: the cost per completion of a high-quality credential.

March 2014

Efficiency in the Community College Sector: Stochastic Frontier Analysis

This paper estimates technical efficiency scores across the community college sector; it finds that the colleges have become more efficient over time but finds no evidence of economies of scale.

January 2014

Community College Economics for Policymakers: The One Big Fact and the One Big Myth

This paper argues that policymaking has been impaired by neglect of the fact that returns to college are high and by acceptance of the myth that the college affordability crisis is due to colleges' wasteful spending.

July 2013

The Economic Benefits of Attaining an Associate Degree Before Transfer: Evidence From North Carolina

Using data on credit accumulation, award receipt, and earnings, this paper examines whether it is better for students to earn an associate degree before transferring to a four-year college.

December 2012

Contextualized College Transition Strategies for Adult Basic Skills Students: Learning From Washington State’s I-BEST Program Model

This report seeks to understand those aspects of the Integrated Basic Education and Skills Training (I-BEST) program that best support student learning, progression, and completion.

November 2012

Community College Occupational Degrees: Are They Worth It?

Thomas Bailey and Clive Belfield consider the role of community colleges, with particular attention to the benefits to workers (as measured by earnings) of certificates and degrees by field of study.

July 2012

Broadening the Benefits of Dual Enrollment: Reaching Underachieving and Underrepresented Students With Career-Focused Programs

The three-year study examined the outcomes of almost 3,000 students participating in eight dual enrollment programs across California.

July 2012

A Model for Accelerating Academic Success of Community College Remedial English Students: Is the Accelerated Learning Program (ALP) Effective and Affordable?

This paper presents findings from a quantitative analysis of the Community College of Baltimore County's Accelerated Learning Program (ALP) for upper level developmental writing students.

April 2017

Focus Areas

Clive Belfield

How HEER Funding Rescued Community Colleges From the Pandemic

How Important Are Community Colleges in Promoting STEM?

How Can Community Colleges Afford to Offer Dual Enrollment College Courses to High School Students at a Discount?

The Economics of Guided Pathways: Cost, Funding, and Value

Who Should Take College-Level Courses? Impact Findings From an Evaluation of a Multiple Measures Assessment Strategy

The Labor Market Returns to For-Profit Higher Education: Evidence for Transfer Students

The False Dichotomy Between Academic Learning and Occupational Skills

Early Momentum Metrics: Leading Indicators for Community College Improvement

Humanities and Liberal Arts Education at Community College: How It Affects Transfer and Four-Year College Outcomes

Humanities and Liberal Arts Education Across America’s Colleges: How Much Is There?

KCTCS Enhancing Programs for IT Certification (EPIC)

Multiple Measures Placement Using Data Analytics: An Implementation and Early Impacts Report

Toward Better College Course Placement: A Guide to Launching a Multiple Measures Assessment System

The Impact of Occupational Licensing on Labor Market Outcomes of College-Educated Workers

Stackable Credentials: Do They Have Labor Market Value?

Is It Really Cheaper to Start at a Community College? The Consequences of Inefficient Transfer for Community College Students Seeking Bachelor’s Degrees

Stackable Credentials: Awards for the Future?

Model Specifications for Estimating Labor Market Returns to Associate Degrees: How Robust Are Fixed Effects Estimates?

The Labor Market Returns to Sub-Baccalaureate College: A Review

Matching Talents to Careers: From Self-Directed to Guided Pathways

Momentum: The Academic and Economic Value of a 15-Credit First-Semester Course Load for College Students in Tennessee

Is Corequisite Remediation Cost-Effective? Early Findings From Tennessee

Weathering the Great Recession With Human Capital? Evidence on Labor Market Returns to Education From Arkansas

The Labor Market Returns to Math in Community College: Evidence Using the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002

Improving the Accuracy of Remedial Placement

Efficiency Gains in Community Colleges: Two Areas for Further Investigation

Calculating the Costs of Remedial Placement Testing

The Labor Market Returns to Math Courses in Community College

What About the Non-Completers? The Labor Market Returns to Progress in Community College

The Medium-Term Labor Market Returns to Community College Awards: Evidence From North Carolina

Can Community Colleges Afford to Improve Completion? Measuring the Costs and Efficiency Effects of College Reforms

Remedial Placement Testing in Community Colleges: What Resources Are Required, and What Does It Cost?

Evaluating For-Profit Higher Education: Evidence From the Education Longitudinal Study

Improving the Targeting of Treatment: Evidence From College Remediation

Can Community Colleges Continue to Do More With Less?

Efficiency in the Community College Sector: Stochastic Frontier Analysis

Community College Economics for Policymakers: The One Big Fact and the One Big Myth

The Economic Benefits of Attaining an Associate Degree Before Transfer: Evidence From North Carolina

Contextualized College Transition Strategies for Adult Basic Skills Students: Learning From Washington State’s I-BEST Program Model

Community College Occupational Degrees: Are They Worth It?

Broadening the Benefits of Dual Enrollment: Reaching Underachieving and Underrepresented Students With Career-Focused Programs

Bridging College and Careers: Using Dual Enrollment to Enhance Career and Technical Education Pathways

Washington State Student Achievement Initiative: Achievement Points Analysis for Academic Years 2007–2011

Measuring Efficiency in the Community College Sector

Predicting Success in College: The Importance of Placement Tests and High School Transcripts

The Benefits of Attending Community College: A Review of the Evidence

A Model for Accelerating Academic Success of Community College Remedial English Students: Is the Accelerated Learning Program (ALP) Effective and Affordable?

Plenary Session: Do Students Invest Wisely in College?

Recent Publications

How HEER Funding Rescued Community Colleges From the Pandemic

How Important Are Community Colleges in Promoting STEM?

How Can Community Colleges Afford to Offer Dual Enrollment College Courses to High School Students at a Discount?

The Economics of Guided Pathways: Cost, Funding, and Value

Recent Presentations

Plenary Session: Do Students Invest Wisely in College?