Report: Students Admitted to College Under Exceptions Unsuccessful

posted by: Ruthie | December 17, 2013, 07:41 PM

The Kansas Board of Regents recently reported that students who did not meet minimum requirement for college admission, but were accepted anyway, experienced low retention rates and mixed success in Kansas public colleges.

Requested by lawmakers in 2012, the report found that from 2010 to 2012, the percentage of freshman admitted as exceptions, who returned as sophomore ranged from 50.6% to 57.1%. Typically, for those students who met standards, 80% continued to sophomore year. After analyzing six years of graduation rates, the report also found students admitted as exceptions graduated at a much lower rate than other students. Just 26.4% system-wide have graduated, compared with a rate of 59.2% for those who met admission standards.

"This is not surprising, given that many, though not all, exceptions have gaps in their educational preparation," explained the report.

Up to 10% of total freshmen admitted at each college are accepted into Kansas’s public universities and colleges without meeting the minimum requirements. In Kansas, a score of 21 on the ACT, graduating in the top 1/3 of their high school class, or completing a pre-college curriculum with at least a 2.0 grade point average are considered basic requirements.

During the most recent year in which statistics were available, The University of Kansas had the highest retention rates, with 64.9% of resident freshmen retained and 80% of non-resident freshmen retained.

While this data is less than ideal and seems obvious, it is important to consider when crafting future policies.

Do you think these statistics are surprising?
Comment below.