Someone once told me, “There are two types of institutions – those that are mission-driven and those that are U.S. News rankings-driven.” This got me thinking; do the two have to be mutually exclusive? I am not suggesting nor recommending that institutions chase the golden calf or the hare in a greyhound race of U.S. News rankings. I, for one, do not think of U.S. News rankings as a trophy to be won and, to my knowledge, the hare has never been caught. Meaning, knowing that the U.S. News rankings methodology changes every year, the endless pursuit of rankings is somewhat of an exercise in futility if you don’t know how the scorecard will be calculated.
For a number of years, the variable with the most meaningful weight or, arguably, the most controllable variable by an institution, in the U.S. News rankings methodology is the graduation rate. That seems to be, as Martha Stewart would say, “a good thing.” I suspect that in many institutional mission statements there is some language around student outcomes – graduation, persistence, success, attainment (or fill in your own language)—about seeing a student achieve the dream of a college degree. I also mean to say by controllable that institutions have some level of control over the graduation rate; not control in a manipulative statistical way, but in a way that allows institutions to collectively, among departments across campus, to focus on or prioritize student persistence.
So, if part of the institutional mission involves some type of student persistence, and if the greatest weight in the U.S. News ranking methodology is assigned to graduation rate, can we do well by doing good? If a priority is given to the graduation rate – via the institutional mission – does this not also positively influence the U.S. News rank? If so, there seems to be an opportunity, as a galvanizing force, around the institutional mission.
In addition, presumably the greater the number of students who persist to graduation, the greater the net tuition revenue of an institution adding to the financial bottom line. Ahh, now the finance people are listening, right? Also, presumably, the more positive the experience students are having, the greater the word of mouth value proposition of the institution. Now I have the ears of the communications and admission people. A positive experience then for graduates as well? Gotcha. Now the advancement or development teams are in the game.
Focusing on institutional mission, assuming there is something relative to student persistence in the statement, leads to greater net tuition revenue, and enhanced value proposition, and U.S. News rankings? Who knew? Well, admittedly, this is not rocket science nor even advanced math. It is purely connecting the dots to identify what is important.
If, as part of the institutional mission, we can work to make students successful—in and out of the classroom,—there are a number of positive outcomes. This sounds like a unifying force or an opportunity for all of us who work at institutions to think about how we can put students in such positions.
I offer some ideas knowing that none of these are necessarily novel; necessary, but not novel.
Guided student pathways. The notion of a new student enrolling in college for the first time provides us with an opportunity to deliberately and intentionally show them the services and experiences that are available to them. In other words, help them pass go – don’t send them out on their own to figure it out. While some, in fact, may figure it out, to achieve the institutional mission of student persistence, we ought to put our best foot forward and show students the way. Not spoon-feeding. Not hand holding. Guiding.
Transitional experience. Tied to this, we must offer some type of student experience that helps the student transition to college. This could be through a first year seminar, a broader first-year experience, via dedicated advising. Ultimately, to use the monopoly metaphor again, mechanisms that help the student get around the “just visiting” jail portion of the monopoly board.
Second-year experience. A dedicated second year experience that continues and builds on the first year, likewise serves an important link to student success. Topics like choosing a major, deeper exploration into life after college, preparation for graduate school, service, professional life with experiential learning opportunities tied to choosing a major or life after college all become increasingly directional.
Advising. The role of academic advising, or more broadly, advising in general, cannot be understated. These meaningful conversations can happen in multiple venues. Ultimately, what is important is that they occur. Research shows that students are more likely to persist if they know someone cares about them. Building advising mechanisms into the experience is but one indication of care and a win for the student and institution.
Student portfolio. A final recommendation for this student journey to success is having students develop their own personal achievements portfolio over the course of their college experience. The portfolio allows students to assess significant growth by asking What am I learning? How am I expanding my awareness of the world? What experiences am I having that lead me on my path of interest? What am I learning or experiencing that does not interest me? Documenting these become a powerful personal tool that allows for a sense of why-am-I-doing-what-I-am-doing intentionality.
Here’s the good news: From an institutional perspective, we can control the development of—or build—these student experiences. The build out involves nearly every institutional area within the classroom and outside of the classroom, bringing me back to my primary point: orchestrating a journey of student success is an incredibly galvanizing institutional opportunity. By focusing on the institutional mission – that is, student persistence – each area of an institution can focus on working together to achieve a common goal. And, as a side benefit, for those who care about these kinds of thing, U.S. News rankings are positively influenced.
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