Institutions in the panel
Harmonised administrative records, 2003 to 2025.
Higher Education Research & Analysis
Better data,better policy,better universities.
We build the evidence base university leaders and funders use to make consequential decisions — from 1,800-institution administrative panels to causal evaluations of national policy.
Access &
EquityPolicy
EvaluationAI in
Higher EdFinance &
PriceWorkforce
OutcomesData
Systems
EquityPolicy
EvaluationAI in
Higher EdFinance &
PriceWorkforce
OutcomesData
Systems
Higher education is one of the largest public investments in the country, and one of the least well measured.
HERA assembles data no single institution can, and turns it into answers leaders can act on within a budget cycle.
We work with systems, states, and foundations — independently, and in the open.
Research themes
Click a theme to open itPeer-reviewed publications
Across policy, economics, and education venues since 2019.
In active research funding
Federal agencies, foundations, and state consortia.
Featured projects
Different questions,
one standard of evidence.
Access & Equity2024
The Completion Gap Atlas
A public map of who finishes, where, and how that has changed across 1,800 institutions.
AOSLNB+3→
Finance & Affordability2023
Tuition Reset
What happens to enrolment and net revenue when an institution cuts its sticker price.
MVAOKO→
AI in Higher Ed2025
Advising at Scale
A multi-campus trial of language models used to triage and route student advising requests.
KHYNIP+1→
Access & Equity2021
First Generation Longitudinal
Five waves following 6,200 first-generation students from application through the labour market.
NBSLAO→
Policy Evaluation2022
The Transfer Maze
Tracing 400,000 transfer attempts to find where credits — and students — are lost.
TAAO→
projects
Filterable by research area, status and year.
→Recent news
View all news →HERA receives $4.2M to extend the Completion Gap Atlas through 2031A five-year renewal will add state-level wage linkage to the panel.AwardAdvising at Scale trial results published in AERA OpenContact among previously non-contacting students rose 34%.PublicationOkonkwo testifies before the state senate committee on higher education financeTwenty minutes on comparison groups, and why the current formula picks the wrong ones.Talk
Supported by
Kessler FoundationNational Science FoundationArdmore TrustSix-State ConsortiumInstitute of Education Sciences