College Readiness, College Enrollment
and Long-term College Success
Presented by The Midwest Office of ACT
Bonnie Weisz- Program Solutions
Chris Mitchell- Program Solutions
ACT= Research
National Curriculum Survey
2009 National Survey available online. 2012 Survey will be
available soon.
College Readiness Benchmark Scores
ACT CRS & Curriculum Review Worksheets—Coding Guide
The following coding comes from the ACT College Readiness Standards
Tables available at:
http://www.act.org/standard/instruct/pdf/CollegeReadinessStandardsTables.pdf
With this information in hand, schools using the Curriculum Review Worksheets
have coding to use with their curriculum alignment/mapping software.
The level of the standard is related to College Readiness Standard (CRS)
intervals, i.e.
2XX - 13 to 15
3XX - 16 to 19
4XX - 20 to 23
5XX - 24 to 27
6XX - 28 to 32
7XX - 33 to 36
EPAS System/CCRIS
Connect the Standards to Instruction
 Assists in organizing instructional practices
 Offers a sequence for delivering content
 Provides clear scope of what is ideally taught
to all students
Mind the Gaps
• In 2009, ACT published Mind the
Gaps: How College Readiness
Narrows Achievement Gaps in
College Success.
2009 ACT-tested High School
Graduates: College Ready
White
Underrepresented minority
2009 ACT-tested High School Graduates
Taking a Core Curriculum
Reductions in Racial/Ethnic Gaps in College Enrollment Associated with
Meeting All Four ACT College Readiness Benchmarks
Enrolled in college first year
Reductions in Family Income Gaps in College Enrollment
Rates Associated with Meeting All Four ACT College
Readiness Benchmarks
Enrolled in college first year
New ACT Research
• Two studies conducted using data from COMPASS/ACT
tested students entering fall 2003 and the National
Student Clearinghouse
• Tracked students through year 7 to obtain graduation
rates
• COMPASS study was unique in that it looked at degree
intent of students at two year institutions.
• Unlike previous studies and national statistics, this new
research tracked degree completion from any institution
so that degrees earned by transfer students counted as
well.
• Recent ACT studies further validate previous research
on college readiness and success
Study Sample Findings
• Students from four-year institutions:
– Tended to be more academically-able than
students from two-year institutions.
– More likely to meet the ACT College
Readiness Benchmarks, to earn a higher ACT
Composite score, to take a core curriculum, to
take higher-level mathematics and science
coursework in high school, and to earn a
higher HSGPA.
– More likely to have a higher family income
range and slightly more likely to be female.
Year 7 degree completion status for
four-year students
(ACT study)
100
Percent
80
60
40
35
30
22
20
10
4
0
Bachelor's
degree
by year 4
Bachelor's
degree
year 5 to 7
Associate's
degree
only
No degree,
still enrolled
Percentages do not sum to 100 percent due to rounding.
No degree,
not enrolled
Degree completion rates over time for
two-year students
(ACT Study)
50
Percent
40
30
20
18
16
18
17
15
17
12
10
8
8
0
0
0.2 0.1
2
9
8
5
3
0
2
3
4
5
6
7
Year
Associate's and
bachelor's degrees
Bachelor's degree
only
Associate's degree
only
Reported percentages in text do not always equal the sum of those shown in the figure due to rounding.
Six-year Bachelor’s Degree Completion Rates by Race/ethnicity
and Number of
ACT Benchmarks Met for Four-year Students
100
80
76
Percent
70
60
63
56
48
40
47
41
54
49
62
56
69
64
75
70
66
59
52
44
37
20
0
0
1
2
3
4
Number of ACT College Readiness Benchmarks met
African American
Asian
Hispanic
White
Degree attainment by academic readiness
Percent getting degree
(COMPASS Reading)
35%
30.3%
30%
25%
26.3%
19.2%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
Not ready
Certificate
Almost ready
Associate's degree
Ready
Bachelor's degree
Total
Six-year Degree Completion Rates by Race/Ethnicity
100
Percent
80
60
64
63
53
40
45
41
34
29
26
20
15
18
21
21
0
Bachelor's degree
Associate's degree
Four-year students
African American
Associate's or
Bachelor's degree
Two-year students
Asian
Hispanic
White
Retention Rates to the Same Institution at Year 4 by Family Income
Range and
Number of ACT Benchmarks Met for Four-year Students
100
80
Percent
71
66
60
60
55
49
40
43
49
55
61
63
66
57
51
45
39
20
0
0
1
2
3
Number of ACT College Readiness Benchmarks met
<$30,000
$30,000 to $60,000
> $60,000
4
Six-year Degree Completion Rates for EPA-tested Students who Met 1 to 3
Benchmarks in Grades 8 and 10 by Number of ACT Benchmarks Met
100
80
Percent
76
60
61
52
40
44
41
35
32
26
20
19
0
Bachelor's degree
Associate's degree
Four-year students
Met 1 to 3/Met 1 to 3/Met none
Met 1 to 3/Met 1 to 3/Met all 4
Associate's or
Bachelor's degree
Two-year students
Met 1 to 3/Met 1 to 3/Met 1 to 3
College Enrollment Rates by Combined EXPLORE/PLAN
Benchmark Attainment
and Student Demographic Group for EPA-tested Students
100
80
71
69
Percent
80
78
76
71
80
78
77
73
71
76
72
71
65
60
54
51
74
70
64
59
56
53
52
48
47
40
53
20
0
Male
Female
African
American
Gender
Met none/Met none
Asian
Hispanic
White
Race/ethnicity
Met 1 to 3/Met 1 to 3
<$30,000 $30,000 to > $60,000
$60,000
Family income range
Met all 4/Met all 4
Degree Intentions:
What level of education do you want to obtain?
Degree Intent
Sample
Classes only
3.9%
Certificate
4.1%
Two-year Degree
31.7%
Four year Degree
29.1%
Grad/Prof Degree
12.5%
No response
18.8%
Degree intent, by age group – Two-Year
Institutions
45%
40%
35%
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
less than 19
20-24
25 and older
Missing
Classes only
Certificate
Associates Deg.
Bachelor's Deg.
Grad./Prof. Deg.
Degree attainment by age group
Percent with degree
35%
32.2%
30%
26.1%
25%
23.3%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
Less than 19
Certificate
Associate's Degree
20-24
25 and older
Bachelor's Degree
Total
Age and Intent
Percent getting degree
40%
35%
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
Associate's Deg.
Graduate Deg.
Degree Intent
19 and younger
20-24
25 and older
Summary of Findings
• NCES/IPEDS Graduation Data not true measurement of success for
all students
• Academic readiness, degree intent, and enrollment status matter in
determining degree completion rates; age does not.
• New studies affirm findings of those found in earlier ACT studies
• Students meeting the individual ACT College Readiness
Benchmarks were substantially more likely to enroll in college, to
persist in college through degree completion, and to earn a degree
in a timely manner.
• As the number of ACT Benchmarks met increased, students’
likelihood of success also increased.
• College success rates were also higher for student who
– Earned a higher ACT Composite Score
– Took a Core Curriculum in High School
– Took Higher-level Math and Science Coursework in
High School
– Earned Higher GPAs
• Average ACT Composite scores and HSGPA were
higher for four-year students who completed a bachelor’s
degree by year 4 than those who took longer
• Students completing a bachelor’s degree by year 7, on
average had higher ACT Composites and HSGPA than
those earning an Associates Degree or no degree
• Consistent with findings from other studies, there were
gaps across demographic groups. College readiness
helps to reduce these gaps.
• Completion rates for any degree were higher for
females, higher-income students, and white students.
• Students who returned to the same institution were more
likely to complete a degree.
• Students taking EXPLORE/PLAN/ACT were
more likely to enroll in college immediately
following high school, to persist at the same
institution, and to complete a degree than ACT
tested only students.
• Those meeting E/P Benchmarks had higher
college success rates than those who met one
or none.
• As the number of E/P Benchmarks met
increased, college success rates also increased.
To view newest ACT research visit:
www.act.org/research
What can colleges do to improve retention and
graduation rates?
• Reinforce the need for entering students to be college and career ready
to maximize their chances for college success.
•Offer remediation/resources to those not college ready to get skills to
college level.
• Track your own students for more accurate graduation statistics. Look
at enrollment status, intent, age, college readiness vs. remediation,
transfer students.
• Use EOS PLAN buys to recruit those on track for college readiness
earlier.
•2010 Report, What Works in Student Retention”
www.act.org/research/policymakers/reports/retain.html