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Race to College Success® is a program assisting students and famlies in preparing for the college admissions process by providing academic advising, college planning assistance, and personalized life coaching for students of all backgrounds and abilities.
Race to College Success® is a program of Edusistance LLC, headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada and serving clients worldwide.
In a recent USA Today (Marklein, 6/3/2009) reported that 4-year colleges graduate 53% in 6 years.The impact of lengthy undergraduate programs for graduate school dreams can be immense as each additional year adds to the debt load a student faces while considering often pricey grad school programs.How do LA area schools measure up?
For those entering into their undergraduate studies knowing that graduate school is their ultimate goal, it is critical that the decision to attend a given school includes a consideration of the length of time a student can realistically complete an undergraduate degree.
The Education Trust website is a valuable resource for understanding where money is best used when balancing undergraduate attendance with grad school aspirations.A quick analysis of Los Angeles area colleges and universities leads to both a good news and bad news scenario.The overall average 4-year graduation percentage is 49% for LA area schools.The public school 4-year average for LA schools is 24%, while the private schools average 61%.The LA area CSU average is an abysmal 11%.
Let that sink in for a minute.10 of the 4-year schools researched have less than half their students graduate in 4-years.There are not many other institutions that can fail to deliver more than half the time and still remain in business.
The shocking and disturbing numbers from the Cal State University system are not an anomaly on a national scale.However, it becomes apparent that the more affordable schools, where more people of modest financial resources attend en mass, are often at the lower ends of the graduation spectrum.
The question becomes, with hopes of grad school, do you pay more to get done quicker?Is the tens of thousands of dollars difference between a high end private school and a public, state school justified when the goal is an extensive graduate program?
Considering the fiscal crisis California is in currently, the problems at the CSU schools may only get worse as classes and faculties get cut dramatically to balance the state budget.Those already in attendance may find required classes offered only once a year, if at all.Delaying graduation may translate into leaving college and forgoing any graduate school dreams.
While graduation rates improve at the 6-year interval, the dichotomy between private and public continues for the CSU system.The UC schools in the LA area show dramatic increases of 30% to 90% for UCLA and 28% to 80% for UC Irvine.
6-year graduation rates for the same 23 schools in the greater Los Angeles area show the overall average 6-year graduation percentage is 68% for LA area schools.The public school 4-year average for LA schools is 54%, while the private schools average 74%.The LA area CSU average once again lags dramatically at 30%.
To see the percentages for each of the 23 LA area schools read the LA Grad School Examiner article:
Janelle Jalbert, LA Grad School Examiner, is the founder of Edusistance and the creator of the Race to College Success program. She has been an educator and advisor for more than a decade. You can reach Janelle, who welcomes suggestions for topics of interest for future articles, via email.
