This study provides one of the first causal estimates of the impact of housing on academic outcomes. While college students are too often dismissed as a privileged and healthy part of the population, researchers increasingly observe housing insecurity among college students. This problem worsened during the pandemic, underscoring the link between housing, employment, mental health, and wellness. Even in states like Florida where tuition costs are stable, basic needs expenditures and the stress associated with basic needs insecurity can negatively impact college students’ success academically as well as their well-being during and after college. Housing is of particular importance as a critical basic need for today’s undergraduate students. The study takes place before and during the ongoing pandemic, thus providing a unique opportunity to understand the short-term impacts of housing on belongingness, mental health, and academic outcomes for the five cohorts studied (Fall 2018 through Spring 2021 housing scholarship applicants). Additionally, we can examine longer-term impacts of housing net the impact of the pandemic on a variety of student outcomes resulting from a mixed-methods design. Because it is difficult and often impossible to fully measure the many pre-college and college-year factors which may contribute to student outcomes, Randomized Control Trial(RCT) is a preferred “gold standard” for evaluation studies, notably for college completion. Triangulated data include admissions application information, a base-year survey at the time of application (response rate: 81%), and a follow-up survey and stratified random sample of interview respondents. We conduct this analysis with these questions in mind: 1)Does this scholarship influence student well-being as measured by belongingness, mental health, and/or financial wellness? 2)Does the provision of a housing scholarship have an impact on student retention or completion? The evaluation aims to assess the “education for life” housing intervention model: rent-free housing and community living for students who receive the scholarship, carefully isolating the effect of housing in comparison to eligible applicants who do not move into this scholarship housing community. Baseline data indicate this population experienced challenges with mental health and financial wellness (including basic needs insecurity) at the time of application.
Findings from the study suggest that these rent-free community housing supports provide greater financial well-being, mental health, and postsecondary educational impacts. More specifically: •Reduced need for paid employment, •Reduced perceived stress, and •Enhanced retention and graduation in terms following assignment. Overall, the housing program appears to serve a population that is academically strong at the start but with considerable financial and health needs. Considerations for implementation and scale are discussed for community programs. Further investigation may allow greater insights into the longer-term impacts of the scholarship program, as most students were still enrolled and on target but had not yet finished college. Our mixed-methods data suggest potentially distinct impacts for STEM students as well as for students whose housing was interrupted during the pandemic.
