College and Career Access for Young Parents
https://www.urban.org/research/publication/college-and-career-access-young-parents
Young parents—those who have their first child before age 25—face steep and preventable barriers to finishing high school, accessing higher education, and securing family-sustaining careers. Only 1 in 10 young parents enrolls in college within a few years of high school, compared with almost half of their peers. Approximately 30 percent of young parents are disconnected from both school and work, compared with just 11 percent of their peers. This report synthesizes insights from a national literature scan, an advisory board of practitioners and young parents, and focus groups with current young parents to identify actionable strategies K–12 institutions can use to better support young parents' pathways to college and family-sustaining careers.
Why This Matters
Young parents are an often-overlooked population whose outcomes shape not only their own futures but those of the children they are raising. Despite strong motivation to pursue education and career pathways, young parents face structural barriers unrelated to their ability or ambition. Systems that fail to recognize and support young parents miss a critical opportunity to improve long-term educational, economic, and health outcomes for parents, their children, and their community. K–12 institutions, in particular, have an important and underutilized role to play in expanding young parents’ access to college and family-sustaining careers.
What We Found
Across the literature, advisory board, and focus groups, the evidence consistently shows that educational and career outcomes of young parents are shaped less by individual factors and more by the systems they navigate. We identified eight promising strategies for K–12 institutions and partners:
Increase visibility of young parents through data collection.
Systematically identify pregnant and parenting students to proactively connect them to resources, accommodations, and supports they are entitled to under Title IX. Currently, few districts do so.Provide career exposure and learning opportunities oriented to young parents’ experiences.
Standard career exploration and work-based learning opportunities do not account for the realities of parenting, including child care, schedule constraints, and the need for family-sustaining wages. Young parents should not be tracked into low-wage, unstable jobs but should be supported in exploring pathways aligned with their goals.Address young parents’ unique experiences.
Young parents frequently experience shame and judgment in educational settings. Schools that cultivate belonging—through welcoming language, family-friendly environments, and peer community—support greater engagement and persistence.Support young parents individually through advising, mentoring, and case management.
Coaching, advising, mentoring, and case management—especially across key transitions from high school to college or work—are critical to young parents’ success. Short-term programs have limited impact; longer-term, relationship-based support shows stronger results.Ensure programs and pathways secure basic needs for young parents.
Child care, transportation, housing, and financial stability are primary drivers of whether young parents can remain enrolled and make academic progress. Lack of child care is among the most cited reasons for dropping out among parenting students.Prioritize financial and resource investment for young parents.
Young parents need sustained investment, including expanded child care subsidies, reform of restrictive program rules that penalize enrollment or part-time status, and long-term mentoring, to access and persist in education and career pathways.Provide opportunities for young parents to advocate for their needs and shape systems.
K–12 institutions and partners can play an important role by making legal rights—including Title IX—clear and accessible, and by creating leadership roles, advisory councils, and peer advocacy opportunities that allow young parents to influence the policies and systems that shape their lives.Cultivate and sustain collaborations with community and governmental partners.
Young parents need supports that span education, workforce, health, housing, and human services. Schools cannot meet these needs alone; partnerships with community organizations, workforce boards, public health agencies, and governmental partners are necessary to provide robust, coordinated support.
How We Did It
This report draws on three data sources. We conducted a national landscape scan of US-based literature published between 2000 and 2025, identifying 104 unique sources including 41 published articles and reports and 63 programs or organizations. Sources were screened in two stages and categorized by system focus (K–12, college, workforce) and methodological type. We also convened an advisory board of young parents, K–12 and higher education practitioners, workforce leaders, and community organization representatives across two sessions in fall 2025. Finally, we conducted two focus groups with 14 young parents: 8 currently enrolled in high school and 6 who had been out of high school for at least a couple of years.