The federal government’s method of collecting college graduation rates is outdated and does not take into account the large number of nontraditional students now in higher education, witnesses told a House of Representatives panel on Thursday.
The current IPEDS system tracks the graduation rates of first-time, full-time freshmen at colleges and universities, a framework that fails to include many part-time working students and those who transfer from lower-cost community colleges to four-year institutions, witnesses said.
“The fixation on first-time, full-time students makes no sense for the world we live in,” said Dr. Mark Schneider, vice president of education, human development and the workforce at the American Institutes for Research.
In recommending changes, one researcher called for the standard collection of graduation information on low-income students and those receiving Pell Grants. While IPEDS collects graduation data by race, reporting data by these two additional measures would help disadvantaged students make decisions on which college to attend.
“Low-income students trying to decide which institution offers them the best chance of earning a degree or credential have no way of assessing how well an institution does for students like them,” said Jose Cruz, vice president for higher education policy and practice at The Education Trust in Washington, D.C.
While some educators and lawmakers are concerned imposing more reporting requirements on colleges, Cruz said such data are critical for economically disadvantaged students and their families. “It’s hard to make the argument that it’s burdensome if it promotes improvement,” he said.
Witnesses also noted that colleges may be hesitant to disclose graduation rates due to the limitations of the data. For example, a college with a 48 percent graduation rate may be doing better than a college with a 68 percent rate if it is enrolling many low-income, nontraditional students, said James Hallmark, vice chancellor at Texas A&M University.
