While applying for financial aid this summer, I came about a shocking statistic regarding the graduation rate at Shepherd University. According to fasfa.gov, the government website where college students apply for financial aid, the graduation rate at Shepherd University is a staggering 38%. I was taken aback by this surprisingly low number so I proceeded to do a little more unscientific research.
On collegefactual.com, a website that provides various statistics from graduation rates to average loan debt on major colleges and universities around the nation, the graduation rate (as of 2012) was listed at 43.5% with only 19.5% of those students graduating within four years. That’s astounding! To put this in perspective only four out of ten students at Shepherd actually graduate. If you factor in the caliber of students Shepherd admits, this graduation rate is actually on par with the national averages however, I would argue the national average of 47.2% is also unsatisfactory and it reflects a major problem with the entire college and university system in America.
In order to graduate from college, one must first simply make it past their freshman year. Of course, that’s easier said than done yet at Shepherd only 63% of students are actually able to do this according to College Factual. The national average freshman retention rate is nearly 70% so clearly Shepherd is also below average in this category.
In case you were wondering, the graduation rate on Shepherd’s webpage, shepherd.edu, is 37.9% and corresponds with the other figures I discovered. So what is the cause for these below average retention and graduation rates at Shepherd? I would argue there is no one single reason and these statistics represent a larger problem found in the higher education system in this country however, I will try to summarize my take on the issue.
I’ll be honest, I am one of those students who failed to graduate in four years and I am now working on my fifth year here at Shepherd so I am speaking from experience when I say there first needs to be a major overhaul of the advisement process at this University. I believe many students, such as me, receive inaccurate and insufficient advising while attending Shepherd. The responsibility of advising should be taken off the shoulders of professors and given to staff that do nothing but advise students. It is my opinion students are often told to take classes they do not need to take and this makes graduating on time simply impossible.
Moreover, I feel the poor graduation rates at Shepherd can also be attributed to the standards the University has when deciding what students to admit. It is imperative, students have respectable GPA’s coming out of high school and a desire to learn in order to ensure they eventually graduate. I would also add the on campus environment and the resources the university provides to students are not conducive to retaining and graduating students on a consistent basis. Course curriculum, professors, and methods of testing should all be under scrutiny when it comes to below average graduation rate as well. Or maybe students simply do not have enough money or lose the motivation to graduate?
The reasons for these low retention and graduation rates are hard to pin point and correct. They stem from larger problems in the American education system but a diligent effort needs to be put forth by the university to graduate more students if they wish to stay in existence for many years to come. I feel this is an extremely important story which I intend to continue to report on throughout the year in The Shepherd Picket and online at supicket.com.
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