Four-Year MYTH - Complete College America
Four-YearMYTHMake college more affordable.Restore the promise ofgraduating on time.
The vast majorityof Americancollege studentsdo not graduateon time butmany more can —saving themselvesand their familiesprecious timeand money.Copyright 2014 Complete College America. All rights reserved.
CONTENTSComplete College AmericaAlliance of States2Restoring the Promise ofOn-Time Graduation4Where We Stand6Where We Need To Be7The Causes8The Costs10The Paradox of Choiceand College Success12The Solution14Using Structure To BoostCollege Completion20Additional Considerations22The Essential Elements of GPS23Endnotes24Methodology & Acknowledgments24State Profiles25Related Resources82Four-Year Myth: Make College More Affordable. Restore the Promise of Graduating on Time. n 1
COMPLETE COLLEGE AMERICAALLIANCE OF STATESAt our founding, Complete College America called on states to take a hard look at thedata, recognize the challenges facing our students, and make clear commitments abouthow we move forward. We sought to organize a network of leaders who would help carrythis mantle and pursue reforms that would significantly increase college completion andclose attainment gaps for underrepresented populations.The response was overwhelming. A tremendous number of governors stepped forward,and the Complete College America Alliance of States was born. Now at 35 members,the Alliance is leading the country by enacting powerful reforms to increase collegecompletion and close attainment gaps. This group is ensuring that the conversationaround higher education equally values access and student success.With the release of the Game Changers, Complete College America and the Alliance ofStates focused our efforts on proven strategies to boost completion — strategies thatyield two, three, and four times the results of traditional programs. And the momentumaround these big ideas is building: Twenty-six states have implemented or are working toward implementation ofperformance funding. Seven states have committed to scaling corequisite remediation by 2015, allowingsignificantly more students to start college-level work with just-in-time academicsupport. Twenty-two states and the District of Columbia have committed totransforming remediation to dramatically increase the percentage of students whocomplete college-level gateway courses in math and English within one academic year. Twenty states have either statewide or campus-based 15 to Finish initiatives toencourage more students to take at least 15 credits per semester or 30 credits peryear and graduate on time. Seven states have programs within them that use structured schedules. Three states are working to take Guided Pathways to Success (GPS) to scale, and fivestates are implementing GPS in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM)initiatives.The work is far from over, but the Alliance is pushing forward, securing a more prosperousfuture for our states and country. These states recognize that time is the enemy ofcollege completion, and they are not wasting a moment in their efforts to ensure thatmore Americans than ever before are able to earn a degree or credential of value.Sincerely,Stan JonesPresident2 n Complete College America
MEMBERSOF THEALLIANCEThe governors below representthe members of Complete CollegeAmerica’s Alliance of States. They, ortheir predecessors, have committed toestablishing statewide completion goals,measuring and publishing their progress,and assembling teams to tackle thesechallenges through the use of GameChanger strategies. They, along with thestate higher education leaders who domuch of the heavy lifting, are our partnersin this important work.n Governor Mike Beebe (Arkansas)n Governor Bobby Jindal (Louisiana)n Governor John Kitzhaber (Oregon)n Governor John Hickenlooper (Colorado)n Governor Paul LePage (Maine)n Governor Tom Corbett (Pennsylvania)n Governor Eloy Inos (Commonwealth of theNorthern Mariana Islands)n Governor Martin O’Malley (Maryland)n Governor Lincoln Chafee (Rhode Island)n Governor Deval Patrick (Massachusetts)n Governor Dennis Daugaard (South Dakota)n Governor Mark Dayton (Minnesota)n Governor Bill Haslam (Tennessee)n Governor Phil Bryant (Mississippi)n Governor Rick Perry (Texas)n Governor Jay Nixon (Missouri)n Governor Gary Herbert (Utah)n Governor Steve Bullock (Montana)n Governor Peter Shumlin (Vermont)n Governor Brian Sandoval (Nevada)n Governor Earl Ray Tomblin (West Virginia)n Governor Susana Martinez (New Mexico)n Governor Scott Walker (Wisconsin)n Governor John Kasich (Ohio)n Governor Matt Mead (Wyoming)n Governor Dan Malloy (Connecticut)n Governor Rick Scott (Florida)n Governor Nathan Deal (Georgia)n Governor Neil Abercrombie (Hawaii)n Governor Butch Otter (Idaho)n Governor Pat Quinn (Illinois)n Governor Mike Pence (Indiana)n Governor Steve Beshear (Kentucky)n Governor Mary Fallin (Oklahoma)Four-Year Myth: Make College More Affordable. Restore the Promise of Graduating on Time. n 3
RESTORING THE PROMISEOF ON-TIME GRADUATIONIn American higher education, it has become the accepted standard to measure graduationrates at four-year colleges on a six-year time frame. And evaluations of two-yearcommunity colleges are now based on three-year graduation rates.Metrics like these are unacceptable, especially when we consider that students and their families aretrying desperately to control the skyrocketing costs of higher education. As lifetime savings are depletedand financial aid packages run out, the extra time on campus means even more debt, and for far too manystudents, additional semesters do not result in a degree or credential.ON-TIME GRADUATION RATES ARE FAR TOO LOW1- TO 2-YEAR CERTIFICATE15.9%ON TIME2-YEAR ASSOCIATE4-YEAR BACHELOR’S(NON-FLAGSHIP)5%19%ON TIMEON TIME4-YEAR BACHELOR’S(FLAGSHIP/VERY HIGH RESEARCH)36%ON TIMEFULL-TIME STUDENTSStudents and parents know that time is money. Student loan debt has now blown past thetrillion-dollar mark, exceeding Americans’ combined credit card and auto loan debts. And that numberdoesn’t even include the large sums of money that parents are borrowing to help their kids pay for tuition,books, room, and board. We’ve passed the point when it’s reasonable to ask if this escalating financialburden is sustainable.We recognize that not every student can or will graduate on time. And there areunderstandable reasons. However, something is clearly wrong when the overwhelming majority ofpublic colleges graduate less than 50 percent of their full-time students in four years.Current on-time graduation rates suggest that the “four-year degree” and the “two-year degree” havebecome little more than modern myths for far too many of our students. The reality is that our system ofhigher education costs too much, takes too long, and graduates too few.4 n Complete College America
Establishing graduation benchmarks of three and six years for associate and bachelor’s degreesrespectively signals an acceptance of the status quo and alleviates the pressure to change.Using these metrics may improve the numbers, but it is costing students and their parentsbillions of extra dollars — 15,933 more in cost of attendance for every extra year of a publictwo-year college and 22,826 for every extra year at a public four-year college.Four years in college is a lot less expensive than five or six. An associate degree is much cheaper intwo years than three or four. Hands down, our best strategy to make college more affordable and asure way to boost graduation rates overall is to ensure that many morestudents graduate on time.First, let’s focus on the right numbers: on-timegraduation rates. We can measure graduation rates at “150percent of time,” but we should no longer accept this metric as thestandard for performance. This report reveals how states are doing atgraduating students on time — and the news is sobering.Second, we must realize that students need a directroute to graduation. We can move new policies and strategiesthat tackle head-on the institutional practices that are the great drag onstudent progress: credits lost in transfer, unavailable critical courses,uninformed choices of majors, low credit accumulation each semester,broken remediation sequences, and excessive credit requirements.Addressing all this is possible through the implementation of acomprehensive, integrated restructuring of higher education delivery —something we call Guided Pathways to Success (GPS).Every major should be organized into a prescribed pathway ofsequenced courses that lead to an on-time arrival on graduation day.And all students should be scheduled to maintain steady progress ontheir chosen path. Random acts of enrollment should be replaced withdeliberate and directed advancement toward degrees.KNOW THIS:Only 50 of the more than 580public four-year institutionsin America have on-timegraduation rates at or above50 percent for their full-timestudents. Some that fall belowthe 50 percent mark include:48% ichigan StateMUniversity44%University of Iowa41% orth Carolina StateNUniversity36%34%Auburn UniversityUniversity of ArizonaThink of it as a mutual responsibility agreement: Students will pledgeto stick to a structured schedule of courses and elective offerings thatrepresent the shortest distance to completion, eliminating the semesterby-semester uncertainty and huge expenses that often accompany a college career. In return,institutions will provide clear degree maps, closely monitor student progress, and guarantee thatthe necessary courses will be available when they are needed.Source: IPEDS (2013)GPS takes the guesswork out of charting a path to on-time graduation, empowering students withinformed choice and making college more affordable.WE CAN RESTORE THE PROMISE OF GRADUATING ON TIME — AND WE MUST.Four-Year Myth: Make College More Affordable. Restore the Promise of Graduating on Time. n 5
WHERE WE STANDThe National PictureMost full-timestudents don’tgraduate on time.Many graduatesearn excesscredits.1- TO 2-YEAR CERTIFICATE64.9And graduates take far too long to finish, costing missedopportunities and money.YEARS 1234562.715.9%ON TIME1 YearStandard30 Credits Standard2-YEAR ASSOCIATECOST OF EACH ADDITIONAL YEAR80.95%2 YearsStandard4-YEAR BACHELOR’S(NON-FLAGSHIP)ON TIME(FLAGSHIP/VERYHIGH RESEARCH) 15,933 35,000 50,9333.6in lost wagestotal for eachstudent seekingassociate degree60 Credits Standard133.519%120 Credits StandardON TIME4.94 YearsStandard134.64.4COST OF EACH ADDITIONAL YEAR 22,826 45,327 68,153in cost ofattendancein lost wagestotal for eachstudent seekingbachelor’s degree120 Credits Standard36%4 YearsStandardON TIMEKNOW THIS:in cost ofattendance*The best strategy for reducing the cost of college is to ensure thatmore students graduate on time.Data for students who began college going full-time.*Includes tuition and fees, room and board, books and supplies, transportation, and other expenses.For source information, see state profiles.6 n Complete College America
WHERE WE NEED TO BEGuided Pathways to Success (GPS) at a GlanceMost American college students do not graduate on time. Using GPS, students make choices of“packaged deal” majors, not random courses. Then they are required to proceed on highly structureddegree maps, geared for on-time completion. GPS leads to more graduates overall and makes collegemore affordable.INFORMEDCHOICE AND“META MAJORS”“Undeclared” students enter collegeand select among a set of initialbroad clusters of majors. As studentsprogress, these meta majors narrowinto more specific areas of study.DEFAULTPATHWAYSStudents do not “discover” theright path; after choosing a major,the academic map is their defaultschedule. Exploration outsideone’s major is still allowed andenabled as intentional investigation,replacing aimless wandering.MATH ALIGNEDTO MAJORSCollege algebra has only one purpose:preparation for calculus, which most non-STEMmajors don’t need. Students are far more likelyto succeed when mathematics are relevantand aligned to their majors. For many programsof study, rigorous statistics and quantitativereasoning courses are more appropriate.CRITICAL PATHCOURSESFrom beginning to end, academicpathways contain critical courses thatmust be completed in sequence eachsemester to certify that students areon track. These courses give studentsearly signals about their prospects forsuccess in a given field of study.ACADEMIC MAPSStudents choose coherent programs,not random, individual courses. Afterstudents make the “big choices” ofmeta majors and academic majors,all the other choices of necessarycredits and course sequences arelaid out for them.INTRUSIVEACADEMIC ADVISINGInnovations in technology allow supportsto be targeted and customized to meet theneeds of individual students. Early warningsystems make it possible for institutions totrack performance in required courses andtarget interventions when and where theyare most needed.Detailed GPS on pages 14–15.Four-Year Myth: Make College More Affordable. Restore the Promise of Graduating on Time. n 7
THE CAUSESWhy are students taking so long to graduate?Over the last 20 years, more than 31 million students have gone off to college but never earneda degree.1 Far too many college students get lost in the process, slowed down by unclearexpectations, numerous obstacles, and having no clear pathway to graduation day.70% remedial math f community collegeostudents referred to1hadnot even attempted acollege-level math classwithin two years.2is available forevery 400 studentson average. Withdozens of majorsto choose fromand no clear direction,overwhelmed students makeavoidable mistakes based onadviseruninformed choices.1.7 students each year beginremediation,college inincluding more than50 percent of two-yearstudents.3million1 in 10 remedial students graduate.MINIMUMSPEED15do not takethe credits necessary to graduate onMost full-time studentsschedule (15 credits per semester or 30 creditsper year), opting instead for lighter course loadsthat put them on five- and six-year plans.2950 f students at two-year% oinstitutionsare taking enoughcredits to graduate on time. f students at four-year% oinstitutionsare taking enough8 n Complete College Americacredits to graduate on time.4Many institutionsexcessivedegree requirements:havemore than 120 credits for abachelor’s degree, more than60 credits for an associatedegree, and more than 30credits for a certificate. 1.5 billiona year isthe cost to Americans whenbachelor’s degree students gojust three credits above what isneeded for their degrees.5
wander the course catalog,Too many studentswastingtoo much time and money. On average, graduates accumulate:Associate degrees:Bachelor’s degrees:instead of thecustomary 60.when 120 is almostalways sufficient.81 credits134 credits,60%75% Unpredictable class f students juggleoschool, family, and work. of bachelor’s degreerecipients changecolleges — and nearlyhalf of them lose someor all of their creditsbecause of brokentransfer policies. 600 million is lost each year ifjust two courses per transfer student failto transfer.7schedules mean collegetakes longer than it should.needed courses aren’t available,Whenstudents take any courses they can to maintainfinancial aid eligibility.2033 f community college students% osaythey were unable to get into aclass needed for their degree.ay they had not gotten into a% sclassthey wanted to take.6Four-Year Myth: Make College More Affordable. Restore the Promise of Graduating on Time. n 9
THE COSTSGraduating late costs students and families billions of dollars.Do the math. As the price tag on higher education has risen, the financial burden of anextra year on campus has skyrocketed, more than doubling at four-year institutions.The cost of higher education has drastically outpaced increases in medianfamily income. As a result, obtaining the education necessary for success has become farmore difficult and costly, and students have been forced to pile on even more debt in the process.THEN AND NOW:Cost of tuition vs. median family income250%Percentage Increase Over Baseline YearCOST FOR EACH YEAR:— 4-year public school— 2-year public school— Median family income 8,893in tuition and fees200% 3,264in tuition and 99920032007Source:National Center for EducationStatistics (2012), Table 349;U.S. Census Bureau (2010)2012Every extra year of tuition and fees adds up, and borrowers who do notgraduate on time take on far more debt in years 5 and 6. On average, an additionalyear now costs more than 3,000 extra at a two-year institution and nearly 9,000 extra in tuition at afour-year institution. Most colleges and universities raise tuition and fees each year, while financialaid stays nearly constant. As scholarships and savings run out, students and their families are left toborrow more of the costs of attending school.POINT OFINTERESTAt Temple University and University of Texas–Austin, higher education leaders arecommitted to increasing on-time completion, and they have the data to show why it’sso important. Two extra years at their campuses increase debt by nearly 70 percentamong students who borrow.CUMULATIVEDEBT UPONGRADUATION 35,000 20,000On timeIn 6 yearsTemple University10 n Complete College America 32,000 19,000On timeIn 6 yearsUniversity of Texas–AustinSources: http://fly.temple.eduand es/ut-strives-improve-fouryear-graduation-rates
Worse, none of these numbers includes the staggering cost of remedial education: an estimated 3 billion-plus a year for courses that don’t count toward a degree. Or the billions of dollars morespent educating students who drop out and never graduate at all.In a large-scale analysis of student transcripts, one U.S. Department of Education study foundthat the average bachelor’s graduate had accumulated 138.4 credits from all the collegesattended up to graduation.8 Add another 20.3 credits, on average, for courses that students fail,repeat, or withdraw from late in the semester, and each four-year bachelor’s degree represents158.7 semester credits earned or attempted instead of the 120-credit standard. At an estimatedcost of 361 per credit hour, these numbers add up fast.9STICKER SHOCK:Cost of excess credits 7.7 billion 11.5 billionin tuitionpublic investmentTotal: 19.2billion a yearNote: These costs include two-year and four-year public institutions.Graduating late also means delaying careers and losing out on wages. Inaddition to extra tuition and fees, students also miss out on the wages they would have earnedhad they graduated on time. According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers,the average starting salary for a bachelor’s degree recipient in the class of 2013 was morethan 45,000. The American Institutes for Research found that associate degree earners couldexpect to earn a starting salary of about 35,000.Add it all up and everyone loses. The public invests in college studies that do not leadanywhere. Students defer earning an income, and they and their families take on massiveamounts of debt to earn degrees that could be much less time consuming and costly.TIME IS MONEY.Four-Year Myth: Make College More Affordable. Restore the Promise of Graduating on Time. n 11
THE PARADOX OF CHOICEAND COLLEGE SUCCESS By Barry SchwartzThere is a set of assumptions that most Americans make that is so deeply ingrained in us thatwe aren’t aware of them. Freedom is good, we believe, the more the better. But we can’t havefreedom without choice. The more choice we have, the more freedom we have. And since themore freedom we have, the better off we are, the more choice we have, the better off we are.These assumptions make good logical sense. But research over the last 15 years or so hasdemonstrated that they aren’t true. Though choice is good, there can be too much of a goodthing. And when there is, it leads to paralysis, to bad decisions, to a loss of self-cont
May 04, 2017 · 1- TO 2-YEAR CERTIFICATE 15.9% ON TIME 4-YEAR BACHELOR’S (NON-FLAGSHIP) 19% ON TIME 4-YEAR BACHELOR’S (FLAGSHIP/VERY HIGH RESEARCH) 36% ON TIME 2-YEAR ASSOCIATE 5% FULL-TIME STUDENTS In American higher education, it has become the accepted standard to measure graduation rates at four-year colleges on a
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