Although states had the option to exempt welfare recipients enrolled in college from
work requirements in their first two years of receipt, the
policy change led to a significant reduction in college enrollment
for single mothers. Nationwide, the representation
of welfare recipients among women enrolled in college also
fell over this period. While 11% of all female students classified
as independent received cash assistance during the
1995–96 academic year, only 2% of students in this group received
welfare in 2000.7 Using a differences-in-differencesin-differences
identification strategy that compares changes
in college-going of women at risk for welfare receipt relative
to other women across states and over time, Dave et al. (2012)
estimate that PRWORA led to a 20% decrease in college enrollment.
Dave et al. (2011) find effects of a similar magnitude
on enrollment in full-time vocational education programs