College Completion Reports and Return on Investment March 28, 2014

Purpose of the Reports Convey a more robust picture of student success Focus attention on closing achievement gaps

With Completion Reports, we can… Track progress toward state completion goals over time Recognize campuses making progress and identify and scale best practices Clearly articulate the importance of full-time enrollment Evaluate the effectiveness of state financial aid policies

Key Takeaway – Expanding the Definition of Student Success Traditional graduation rates do not fully capture all forms of student success Incorporating transfer students and those that change degree type adds: – 8% to the success rate of 2-year college entrants – 13% to the success rate of 4-year college entrants

Key Takeaways - Completion On-time completion is the exception, not the rule – 75 percent of community college students that complete an associate degree do so in 3-6 years – Half of 4-year college students that complete a bachelor’s degree do so in 5-8 years Full-time success rates are significantly higher than part- time – FT students are 1.5 times more likely to complete an associate degree within 6 years – FT students are 6 times more likely to complete a bachelor’s degree within 8 years

Key Takeaways – Achievement Gaps Racial/Ethnic achievement gaps are substantial (even with the broader definition) – At 2-year campuses, there is a 24 percentage point gap in completion rates – At 4-year campuses, the gap is 31 points – Even the campus with the smallest gap still sees a 16 point gap Income-based gaps do not follow the same pattern – At 2-year campuses, 21 st Century Scholars nearly match and Frank O’Bannon recipients outperform the general population – At 4-year campuses, gaps are wider with O’Bannon recipients falling 2 points behind the general population and 21 st Century Scholars falling 16 points behind

Key Takeaways - Cost The cost to produce a degree in this state varies as expected for 2-year and 4-year schools, but is fairly consistent among peer institutions – The overall expenditure per completion for students at 2-year institutions is $31,369 – The overall expenditure per completion for students at 4-year institutions is $61,208

Return on Investment Reports State-level (4-year and 2-year) and college-level reports Data relating to: – Cost of college – Student debt – Most popular programs – Average salary after 1, 5 and 10 years – Top industries of employment after 1 year Return on investment is $2 or more for every dollar invested – and it grows over time