Iowa universities make progress on retention, graduation rates

Presidents of Iowa's state universities said they have various new initiatives aimed at boosting student retention and graduation rates, including encouraging more new students to take part in living-learning communities and more timely intervention for students struggling in subjects like math.

The state Board of Regents on Wednesday heard the annual report on retention and graduation rates from the University of Iowa, Iowa State University and the University of Northern Iowa. The universities are making some progress, officials said, but there is variation among certain cohorts of students.

Six-year graduation rates for the entering class of 2006 were 70.4 percent at ISU, 69.8 percent at the UI and 66.3 percent at UNI. The rates have generally climbed in the past five years with some fluctuations. The national average for all public four-year colleges was 54.2 percent, when looking at six-year graduation rates for the entering class of 2006.]

The rates for minority students lagged behind the overall student population. The six-year graduation rate for minority students entering in 2006 was 63.4 percent at the UI and ISU, and 44.6 percent at UNI.

The four-year graduation rates are much lower than six-year rates -- 48.2 percent for the entering class of 2008 at the UI and 37.8 percent for that entering class at UNI, for example.

Four-year rates tend to be lower than six-year rates because many students participate in internships and job co-ops and study abroad experiences, officials said. Also, ISU President Steven Leath said a university that is heavy with science, technology and engineering majors often has students who take longer to graduate. ISU has several programs intended to take longer than four years, such as architecture, he said.

ISU last fall fall formed a student experience enhancement council to study ways to enhance successful undergraduate education, which includes looking at retention and grad rates, Leath said. Students in living-learning communities, for example, have much higher retention rates, he said.

At the UI, a new program will allow full-time students to take one summer course for free, an effort aimed at keeping them engaged on campus and moving them faster toward graduation, President Sally Mason said.

"We're pleased about the progress, but there's a lot more work that we can and should be doing," she said.

Regents President Craig Lang said he's happy with what the numbers show, especially when comparing the Iowa university's rates to national averages.

The universities also must balance wanting to graduate more students in four years with the desire to prepare students for the workforce, Lang said. Internships and study abroad can lengthen the amount of time a student is in school, he said, but they can help with job placement.