Enrollment of undocumented students at California universities dropped from 2016 to 2023, finds study

Enrollment of low-income, undocumented students declined by half at University of California and California State University campuses from 2016 through the 2022–23 academic year, according to a new study by the University of California Civil Rights Project at UCLA and UC Davis School of Law.

The paper, “‘California Dreamin’: DACA’s Decline and Undocumented College Student Enrollment in the Golden State” is believed to be the first to report on data collected during an era marked by increasing limitations on DACA, or Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals.

Further, researchers found, for UC and CSU low-income undocumented students overall (new and continuing students) there was a 30% decline between 2018–19 and 2022–23. This reflects a delayed impact as earlier large cohorts took time to graduate.

Given existing state laws intended to provide equal access for undocumented students who grew up in California, the authors attribute the stark declines to the gradual constrictions on DACA since 2017, which worsened after a Texas federal district court’s national injunction in 2021 blocking the processing of new DACA applications, researchers said.

Restrictions make it more difficult for Gen Z undocumented college students to obtain legal employment and other benefits that make college more accessible and affordable, researchers said.

The study, authored by William C. Kidder, research associate at the UCLA Civil Rights Project, and Kevin R. Johnson, professor and former dean, UC Davis School of Law, is publishing in the Journal of College & University Law.

“As a researcher and as an administrator who has worked in both the UC and CSU, what surprised me was just how consistent the findings were across the two university systems,” said Kidder, referring to new Dream Act enrollment declines of 51% at UC and 48% at CSU since 2016-17 and other key findings.

“I believe that underscores how common it is for young Gen Z undocumented college students to struggle when DACA is beyond reach and when they are excluded from campus jobs and surrounding labor markets.”

The study compared low-income undocumented students with low- and lower-middle income students at UC and CSU with similar academic profiles. The absence of declines among these control groups highlights the unique challenges faced by undocumented students today. It also supports the authors’ conclusion that the stifling of DACA plays a major role in explaining why undocumented college students are having such a difficult time pursuing the dream of a university education, the authors said.

“The study serves as a reminder that action is needed to address the fading away of DACA, which benefited so many young noncitizens,” said Johnson. “Hopefully, Congress and the president in the future work to address the issues.”

The California state legislature passed Assembly Bill 2586, known as the Opportunity for All Act, which would prevent the UC, CSU and California Community Colleges from disqualifying students from applying for campus employment due to their failure to provide proof of federal work authorization. The bill was sent to Gov. Gavin Newsom earlier this month.

“California is an upper-bound test case with the strongest, longest and arguably most robust set of state laws and university-level aid policies to support undocumented college students, including in the realm of financial aid,” the authors wrote.

Even so, given the gradual demise of DACA for recent cohorts of young Gen Z undocumented students hoping for access to quality higher education opportunities, the data show those opportunities are declining, the authors said.