The name is absent

1. Introduction

A recent story in the New York Times discussed a “small but apparently growing
number of high achieving, well-off students [who] are stepping off the fast educational
track, at least for a short stroll” (New York Times 2001:A1. A17). The story reported
that guidance counselors and college admissions officers along with a flourishing industry
of consultants are promoting the notion that “higher education works best for those who
wait” (New York Times 2001:A17). Although some individuals may benefit from
delaying entry to college is this true for students in general? Before rushing to advise
students to take a year off before attending college, we need to know what impact this
will have on their chances of graduating.

Delaying entry to college is not a new phenomenon. Among the high school
graduating classes of 1972, 1980, and 1982 about one-quarter of those who entered post-
secondary education within four years of graduating from high school delayed entry.
One-third of those who delayed entry delayed by more than two years. Fourteen years
after high school graduation, 68 percent of the class of 1972 had enrolled in some form of
post-secondary education and almost one-third had delayed entry (Eagle and Carroll
1988). An analysis of the high school graduating class of 1980 revealed that 53 percent of
those who started a bachelor’s degree “on-track” subsequently obtained a degree. In
comparison, only 21 percent of those who delayed entry graduated. The effects of delay
vary across individuals. For example, when high socioeconomic status students delay

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