Only 57% of Freshmen Earn Their College Degree Within Six Years. And That’s the Good News.
by Mark Sklarow, Executive Director, IECA
A new national study by Education Trust reports the surprising figure that only 57% of college freshmen (in 1999, the class studied) nationwide has achieved their undergraduate degree within six years. That figure includes students who transferred and graduated elsewhere. Worse still were the numbers for low-income and underrepresented minorities whose six-year graduation rate was just 45%. If ever there was a number that begs for innovation on campus—and for better advising upfront—this is it.
The report also showed that community colleges may not be the answer. There, fewer than 24% of low-income and minority students completed their associates degree within four years.
Clearly we are failing these students. Whether it is not providing the tools they need academically, not enveloping them in the school community, or lack of support systems in place once they arrive, such figures speak clearly and alarmingly of a broken system.
In the field of educational consulting we know one thing: a student is more likely to succeed when there is a great match made between the students needs, interests, and abilities, and the institutions best suited to help them thrive. That’s what great counseling is all about and what the Independent Educational Consultants Association stands for.
Many have believed that the failure to graduate was directly related to the student’s ability to afford tuition. That is, a low-income or minority student has a more difficult time sustaining the cost of a college education over four, five or six years. However the study looked at those receiving Pell grants. Looking at two-year institutions, even those with grants completed their program at a rate of 32%—the same rate as other students.
Many have heard me say that we must end this focus on where “students get in,” which dominates the media and shift our focus to “where students thrive, succeed, and graduate.”
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