Education Madness: Graduating on Time? – It’s No Layup, Baby!

March Madness is upon us.  As a casual basketball fan, my picks have historically been determined by the answers to three important questions: Do I like the coach? Do I like the conference? Where are they seeded?

However, with my oldest daughter two years away from college, I wondered how the field of 64 would fare if they competed on four-year graduation rates – the percentage of incoming freshmen who graduate in four years.

Duke Edges Villanova in Overtime for Grad-Rate Championship

Here’s what I found, based on statistics collected by CollegeData.com:

Duke wins! The Blue Devils and Villanova were tied at the end of regulation, each with a four-year graduation rate of 88 percent. In overtime, Duke edges Villanova on a six-year graduation rate tie-breaker: 95 percent versus 91 percent.

Joining Duke and Villanova in the Final Four are Stanford University and American University, a #15 seed.

Top Seeds by Four-Year Graduation Rate	Bottom Seeds by Four-Year Graduation Rate
1-Duke University (88%)	1-Eastern Kentucky University (12%)
1-Villanova University (88%)	1-Weber State University (12%)
3-Harvard College (87%)	3-University of Louisiana-Lafayette (13%)
3-University of Virginia (87%)	3-University of Memphis (13%)
5-Providence College (84%)	5-New Mexico State University (14%)
6-Stanford University (80%)	5-University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (14%)
7-Wofford College (79%)	7-North Carolina Central University (15%)
8-University of NC-Chapel Hill (77%)	8-Wichita State University (17%)
9-George Washington University (74%)	9-SF Austin State University (23%)
10-St. Joseph’s University (74%)	10-University of Cincinnati / ND State Univ. (24%)

Interesting stats from the field of 64:

• The average four-year graduation rate of the field is 47 percent.
• 13 of the schools have four year graduation rates over 70 percent.
• 33 of the schools have four year graduation rates under 50 percent.
• 18 of the schools have four year graduation rates under 30 percent.

Cheer for Your Favorites, Plan for Your Future

If you are like me, the NCAA Tournament is a family affair, with both parents and children completing brackets. This is a great opportunity to start the discussion about college plans and strategies for completing a college degree.

While many students and parents focus on getting into college, getting through college is the real challenge. Currently, only 59 percent of students who begin a four-year degree program graduate in six years, according to the U.S. Department of Education. Finishing in four years is even harder – less than 40 percent of students accomplish that feat, according to Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) research.

College completion is no layup.  If we want our children to graduate in four years, we have to give them more opportunities to work on the critical fundamentals: skills, knowledge and behaviors that research shows are at the heart of college success.