According to a UC annual report, both freshman and transfer
student graduation rates have been increasing steadily, especially
from 1996 to 2002.
The report also shows UC graduation rates are growing faster
than the national average and there have been significant upsurges
in the graduation rates of many underrepresented minority
groups.
“We do see a lot of people graduate from our
office,” said Claudia Salcedo, the chairwoman of the Campus
Retention Committee, the funding board of the Student Retention
Center. The SRC helps run many minority projects and targets
students under academic probation or who have been dismissed from
the university.
The center helps students get on track to graduate through
counselor appointments, readmission and summer retention programs
and workshops, Salcedo said.
The annual report on graduation rates was based on freshmen who
entered in fall of 1996 and graduated by the end of the 2001-2002
school year and on transfer students who entered in the fall of
1997 and graduated by the end of 2000-2001. The transfer students
were tracked for four years because they came into the UC with
credits counting toward graduation.
The Chronicle of Higher Education also found that compared to
other NCAA Division I universities, the UC graduation rate of 77.9
percent in 1996 was above the national average of 59 percent.
The increase in freshman graduation rates paralleled the
increase in UC freshman persistence rates, which are also growing
faster than the national averages. The freshman persistence rate is
the percentage of freshman who continue into their second year.
“If students finish their first year successfully, then
there is a good sign that they will graduate. It’s important
to get off to a good start,” said Hanan Eisenman, spokesman
for the UC Office of the President.
There are a variety of factors contributing to the high
graduation rate, Eisenman said. These factors include the fact that
the majority of UC students attend class full time and that
freshmen typically take college preparatory classes to get ready
for the university.
The strong UC financial aid system, student service programs,
on-campus housing and orientation also help students acclimate to
college life and studies, Eisenman added.