Despite recent efforts to increase accountability in institutions of postsecondary education, ethnic and racial disparities in student outcomes persist at most of the nation's colleges and universities (Bensimon, 2004). The purpose of this study is to explore whether there are disparities in graduation rates from postsecondary institutions between different racial and ethnic groups in Washington state.
This study relied on the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) to estimate postsecondary graduation rates. These graduation rates from postsecondary institutions are examined by comparing rates for three student groups: (1) All Student Group which includes all students, (2) Measurement Group 1, which includes ethnic and racial minoritized students (all racial and ethnic groups minus students reporting their race as white or unknown), and (3) Measurement Group 2, which includes ethnic and racial minoritized students who are more underrepresented in postsecondary institutions (Measurement Group 1 minus Asian students, U.S. nonresident students, and students reporting their race unknown). Comparing these groups can demonstrate if ethnic and racial disparities in student outcomes exist in Washington postsecondary education.