Cal Poly’s first-year dropout rate in 2008 was 8.6 percent, a figure Director of International Planning and Analysis Brent Goodman said is significantly lower than many institutions. Goodman said the goal at many colleges is to focus on the students least likely to drop out and stay away from students who are unlikely to succeed but at Cal Poly it’s different.
“We’ve got high-quality students,” Goodman said. “They’re all very likely to succeed.”
Despite having less to deal with in terms of dropouts, Cal Poly has made changes over the past few years to help students who seem to be struggling, as well as make it easier for students to see the full picture when making progress on their degrees.
“Everything we do is focused on trying to get students progressing to a degree,” Associate Vice Provost for Systems and Resources Kimi Ikeda said.
Last year, the Office of the Registrar targeted students who seemed to be struggling after fall quarter. Those students then took a survey and met with advisers in a workshop, followed by follow-up communications. Students showed an average grade point average improvement of 0.875. The program will begin again this year in a more expanded form.
“We try and help students to be successful, to stay on track,” Associate Registrar Debbie Arseneau said. “So we’re doing early detection of students who are maybe having trouble and we’re going out and approaching them. We’re not waiting for them to come to us.”
Arseneau said the advising on campus is being looked at as a whole to facilitate early connections between students and advisers. She said they’re making a push to make sure students can get seats in the classes they need, avoid having to re-take classes and graduate on time.
This falls in line with Cal Poly’s recent push to have as many students as possible graduate in four years. Students who exceed the four year mark cost taxpayers as well.
“You’ve got students that are coming and dropping out which you feel is wasted time,” Goodman said. “And then you’ve got students who are finished but are just hanging around taking seats.”
A student who takes 36 units and drops out costs taxpayers the same amount as a student who takes 36 extra units across their Cal Poly career. There will also always be students who drop out for legitimate and unavoidable economic or personal reasons.
Cal Poly has its own issues, choosing sometimes to spend money on students who want to study too much over students who drop out. But the school is making efforts to make being a student more efficient and effective.
“There have been road blocks for students,” Goodman said. “(But Cal Poly’s) done a lot this past year.”