More than three-quarters of Indiana high school graduates are prepared for college-level coursework, according to Indiana’s new College Readiness Reports released today. Statewide, there was an improvement of five percentage points in the number of Hoosier students who entered college directly from high school without needing remedial coursework before earning credits toward a degree.
“College readiness is a key measure predicting student success and degree affordability,” Indiana Commissioner for Higher Education Teresa Lubbers said. “When students leave our K-12 system college-ready, they spend less on costly remedial courses and are more likely to graduate on time. Too many students still need remediation when they begin college, but the gains illustrated in our new report show real momentum for continued improvement.”
Remedial courses, which don’t count toward a college degree, are required when high school graduates lack the academic skills they need to be successful in college-level classes. Seventy-seven Indiana counties saw improvements in the percentage of students who were college-ready. Twenty-four of those counties saw increases of 10 or more percentage points.
Lessons Learned from Indiana’s 2015 College Readiness Reports
Too many students are not college ready. Even with recent improvements, nearly one-quarter of students entering college require remedial coursework.
Diploma type matters. The type of high school diploma students earn is a strong indicator of their likelihood to enroll, be ready for and succeed in college. For example, 5 percent of students with Honors diplomas needed remediation in 2013—compared to 33 percent for those with Core 40 diplomas and 67 percent for those with General diplomas.
Too few college freshmen are on track to complete their degrees on time. In 2013, college freshmen earned an average of 21.5 credits their first academic year. To graduate on time, students need to take 15 credit hours per semester—or 30 credits per year.
“The most affordable degree is an on-time degree,” Lubbers said. “More Hoosiers are making that connection because of our outreach efforts and financial incentives for students and colleges. I believe we will see even bigger gains in this area moving forward.”
About the Data
The College Readiness Reports include data on Hoosier students who graduated from an Indiana public high school in 2013 and immediately entered college—including information on where students attend college, enrollment by program type, student performance as well as students’ socioeconomic status and race/ethnicity. Seventy-seven percent of students from the Class of 2013 were college ready, compared to 72 percent of the Class of 2012.
Released annually by the Indiana Commission for Higher Education in partnership with the Indiana Department of Education, the reports aim to give local schools and communities a clear picture of student performance early in their college experience and to inform policies that increase college readiness and success.
This year, Indiana’s College Readiness Reports include a new factor: two-year persistence. This new measure shows how many students who enroll in college as freshmen are still enrolled the following year. The report shows 76 percent of students who enrolled in college in 2011 remained enrolled at the same college in 2012. The nature of this measure means data will always be one year behind the rest of the factors measured in the readiness reports.
Accessing the College Readiness Reports
Available online at www.che.in.gov, the Indiana College Readiness Reports are provided at the high school, school corporation, county and state levels. The reports also are accompanied by a “User Guide” that helps schools and communities interpret the reports and use the data to inform local policy and instructional practices.
The Indiana College Readiness Reports include students who graduated from Indiana high schools in 2013 and attended a college or university during the 2013-2014 academic year. Data for the state’s public colleges and universities is collected annually by the Indiana Commission for Higher Education. Data for Indiana private colleges and out-of-state colleges was provided by the National Student Clearinghouse.
Learn more about the Indiana College Readiness Reports:
Introduction
Data At A Glance
School Level Reports
Corporation Level Reports
County Level Reports
State Level Report
User Guide