Last month, The Oregonian printed a news article stating that 20 percent of Oregon high school graduates who attend a public university within the state will drop out during their first year of school, according to figures from the freshman class of 2004. The story also reported that most of the students who dropped out before their sophomore year of college did so because of a low grade averageor an inability to adequately handle various academic demands.
Should the University be concerned about The Oregonian’s bleak portrayal of high school students who are ill-prepared to cope with the demands of college? In a word, no. In the article, The Oregonian makes the mistake of lumping all Oregon public universities together, then averaging percentages and drawing conclusions that are supposed to apply to all of the public colleges. In reality, some universities do a much better job of retaining freshmen than others. For instance, 87 percent of Oregon high school graduates who entered the University in 2004 made the transition between freshman and sophomore year with no problem. Other schools, such as Western Oregon University and Portland State University, are not so lucky. Almost one-third of Oregon high schools grads who attend either of those colleges drop out before the end of their first year.
Perhaps The Oregonian ought to have changed the headline “Oregon grads struggle in college” to “Oregon grads struggle in colleges other than the University of Oregon.” Or maybe we just like to toot our own horn.
The University also deserves praise for its ability to not only retain Oregon high school graduates, but students in general. Wednesday, the Emerald reported that according to research conducted by the Oregon University System, the University boasts the highest “graduation and persistence rates” of any OUS institution (“UO’s rate of retention a state high,” ODE, March 1). Data collected by the OUS is from the freshman class of 1998-99, extending to the 2004-05 school year. At the University, 65.8 percent of that group graduated, 7.8 percent more than average for that particular freshman group around the state.
What explains this comparative success? Both articles point out one key factor: high admission standards. Because the University, which requires a 3.25 GPA and sixteen academic credits for guaranteed admission, has the highest admission standards of any state school in Oregon, it appears that students who enter the University are already prepared to handle the work loads and intellectual endeavors necessary to keep an appropriate GPA and stay in school.
Other factors contributing to the University’s retention rates may be the implementation and expansion of programs such as IntroDUCKtion and Freshman Interest Groups; these programs help incoming students find communities and get acquainted with campus. The more students connect with positive activities outside of class, the better they will achieve academically and stay enrolled.
We congratulate the University for setting high admission standards and for clearly making retention a priority through multiple programs for freshmen. We should maintain these endeavors and strive to continue leading the state’s public universities in retention and graduation rates.