Student Educational Pathways:  New research on student mobility and success AACRAO Transfer Conference July, 2013 Afet Dundar, PhD Associate Director National Student Clearinghouse Research Center

Results from Third Signature Report: Reverse Transfer Results from Fourth Signature report: Completing College Implications

Reverse Transfer: A National View of Student Mobility from Four-Year to Two-Year Institutions

Analysis Students who began in four-year institutions in Fall 2005 Tracked students over six years Identified reverse transfer or mobility as enrolling in a two-year institution in non-summer months and prior to first degree completion Enrollment in two-year institutions in summer terms tracked separately Timing of transfer or mobility Completion rates by enrollment pathway

1.2 million students began in four-year institutions in Fall 2005 Subsequent enrollment in two-year institutions   N % Reverse Transfer (Regular Term) 178,846 14.4% Summer Session Course Takers 67,231 5.4%

Subsequent Enrollment Outcomes 28% 17%

Six-Year Outcomes for All Reverse Transfer Students 4

Key Takeaways: Reverse Transfer 14% enrolled in two-year institutions in regular terms: 17% returned to institution of origin including 31% of single-term students 11% of multiple-term students More than a quarter returned to a different 4-year More than half did not return to four-year sector 5.4% enrolled in two-year institutions in summer terms only

A National View of Student Attainment Rates Completing College: A National View of Student Attainment Rates

Study Cohort and Outcome Definitions Started with entering cohort of fall 2006 1.9 million unique students in all types of institutions (two-year and four-year, public and private) Counted all completions (any degree or certificate) within 6 years (through May, 2012), regardless of the student pathway Counted all students: Full-time Part-time Mixed enrollment (enrolled both full time and part time) Results reported by traditional-age students (age 24 or younger) and adult learners (age over 24) 11/22/2018

Cohort Distribution by Age and Enrollment Intensity 1 Cohort Distribution by Age and Enrollment Intensity 1.9 million students who entered college in Fall 2006 11/22/2018

National Completion Rate of 54% in 6 years 12% of the first-time students graduated at a different institution from where they started 11/22/2018

Six-Year Outcomes by Starting Institution 11/22/2018

11/22/2018

22% of Completions Are Not Captured by the Starting Institution’s Grad Rate More than one in five students who completed a degree did so at an institution other than where they started – students whose successful outcomes are invisible to traditional graduation rate calculations 24% for traditional-age students 34% for those who started at public two-year institutions

Completion Rate by Enrollment Intensity 11/22/2018

Completion Rate by Age at First Entry 11/22/2018

Six-Year Progress by Age and Enrollment Intensity 11/22/2018

Out-of-State Completions 3.5 percent received a degree in a state different from where they started. Thus, out-of-state completions represent about 6.5 percent of all completions.

Four-Year Completions for Two-Year Starters 11/22/2018

Implications Students, institutions and government policymakers need information about all pathways to student success and not just the traditional. Outcome measures that follow the student to capture the complex enrollment behaviors of today’s students. prevent misclassifying as non-persisters those students who persist or graduate beyond the starting institution. credit institutions for serving the needs of students who transfer or enroll part time. 11/22/2018

Implications Policies that support student persistence to graduation anywhere in the postsecondary education system are needed. Policy incentives for successful outcomes (for students or for institutions) should embrace all pathways to success, including pathways taken by part-time and mixed enrollment students adult learners transfer students 11/22/2018

Accountability More than one fifth of all students who complete a degree do so at an institution beyond the starting institution. Yet, accountability pressure continues to focus on the single-institution pathway. Can we tell a better story about how institutions contribute to student success along multiple pathways?

Changing Institutional Practice Each institution, and the system as a whole, serves students better when they understand the whole student pathway. What institutions do the students arrive from? What institutions do they leave for? How do they compare to trends for similar institutions? Are institutions equipped with information to devise and implement policies that lead to more successful students? Are students informed of multiple pathways to success?

Research Center Reports: http://research.studentclearinghouse.org/ Thank You Research Center Reports: http://research.studentclearinghouse.org/ Afet Dundar: dundar@studentclearinghouse.org