Year 3 Annual Report: USAID Advance Program

The program worked closely with 9 partner institutions and 21 corresponding degree programs to improve the quality and relevance of technical degree programs and increase access to technical tertiary education for disadvantaged youth. During Year 3, the program made significant progress toward improving the quality and relevance of technical degree programs by working on 92% of the activities included in the Year 3 work plan. The program conducted an asset mapping of curriculum across the nine institutions and revised and pilot-tested curriculum in Jamaica. The program also evaluated faculty and staff skills and knowledge, developed and implemented professional development offerings, and engaged the private sector in curriculum revisions and professional development opportunities. Under Result 2, the program had key achievements in the areas of recruitment, admissions, and scholarships. The highlight of Year 3 was the design and launch of the Advance scholarships program for disadvantaged youth in each country. The program awarded full-scholarships to over 240 students that covered academic and incentives costs, such as food, lodging, and transportation. The program also developed support and monitoring strategies to ensure that students successfully completed their first year of studies. The program made significant progress toward 10 of the 12 indicators, as well as several relevant progress indicators. Two indicators, Indicator 1 and Indicator 4, will not be reported until Year 4 as the first student cohorts will graduate during that year. The program began working with the first Partial Program Intervention (PPI) student cohorts, who enrolled in 2017 and are benefitting from curriculum revisions and improvements in institutional processes. The program also worked with the first Full Program Intervention (FPI) student cohorts, who enrolled in 2018 and benefit from new and revised curriculum, improved institutional processes, and scholarships. The program completed data processing, analysis, and the final baseline report for six beneficiary institutions in Honduras, Guatemala, and Jamaica. The results of this baseline helped the program to revise target estimates for Year 3 and the life of the program. The program assumed that 50% of graduates will obtain new or better employment within 6 months of graduation, based on data gathered from the initial Advance baseline study and the latest report from the ILO. The program's progress toward life-of-program indicator targets by the end of Year 3 is shown in Table 2. The program made significant progress toward increasing access to productive economic resources for female participants, with a cumulative achievement of 35% by the end of Year 3. The program also made progress toward increasing the number of individuals with new or better employment following completion of USG-assisted workforce development programs, with a cumulative achievement of 0% by the end of Year 3. The program's achievements in Year 3 demonstrate its commitment to improving the quality and relevance of technical degree programs and increasing access to technical tertiary education for disadvantaged youth. The program's progress toward its indicators and targets will continue to be monitored and evaluated in future years.