Crossing the Finish Line

Jill Flees,Joe O'shea

doi:10.33009/fsop_jpss129109

Abstract

Each year, hundreds of thousands of students leave higher education without earning their degree. Helping these students return and complete their degree is an enormous opportunity for higher education to propel social and economic mobility for students and their broader communities. With limited resources at postsecondary institutions, however, most institutional attention tends to go to students currently enrolled, not those who were enrolled. In this case study of Florida State University’s Completion Campaign, we detail how a low-cost, high-impact effort has helped over 1,600 students in four years return to complete their degrees. We illustrate the key features and components of the program, its impact on student success, and considerations for institutions who may want to adopt similar approaches.

Highlights

The pursuit of higher education is a commitment of time, energy, and resources shared among the student and the institution
Connecting with the student early, even if re-enrollment could not be immediate, was key in maintaining a student’s commitment to earning their degree. This observation echoes findings in the 2019 National Student Clearinghouse report Some College, No Degree, which concluded that students who re-enrolled within three years of their last enrollment had a 50 percent greater chance of completing than those who re-enrolled after four or five years (Shapiro et al, 2019, p. 10)
The 2014 cohort rose to a 71.6 percent four-year graduation rate and an 84.2 percent six-year graduation rate (FSU Office of Institutional Research, 2018b)

Summary

Introduction

The pursuit of higher education is a commitment of time, energy, and resources shared among the student and the institution. Many students, especially those beginning fulltime at a bachelor’s degree granting institution, have plans to take full advantage of their opportunities and successfully complete their degree within four years. In 2015, the median earnings of bachelor’s degree recipients working full-time were 67 percent higher than those of high school graduates, whereas those with some college but no degree only earned 12 percent more than high school graduates (Ma et al, 2016). What is most disappointing is that many students leave higher education even after earning significant college credit—leaving sometimes when they are only one or two terms away from graduation

Literature Review

Findings

Conclusion