ClaytonCollege
StateUniversity
Strategic Enrollment Management Plan(Draft – 3/16/05)
Spring 2005
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Strategic Context
National, State, and Local Context
Student Profiles
Admissions and Recruitment Patterns and Trends
Enrollment, Retention, and Graduation Trends
Customer Satisfaction Indicators
Student Satisfaction Questionnaire
National Survey of Student Engagement
Future Needs Identified
The Strategic Enrollment Management Steering Committee
Strategic Enrollment Management Subcommittees
Recruitment Strategies Subcommittee
Retention Strategies Subcommittee
Coordination Subcommittee
Plan Review Process
Goals, Objectives, and Key Performance Indicators
Area: Recruitment
Area: Retention
Enrollment Management Action Plan
Area: Recruitment
Area: Retention
Appendix I: Steering Committee and Subcommittee Membership
Steering Committee
Recruitment Strategies Subcommittee
Coordination Subcommittee
Retention Strategies Subcommittee
Appendix II: Student Satisfaction Questionnaire
Appendix III: Student Satisfaction Questionnaire Results
Appendix IV: The National Survey of Student Engagement
Appendix V: National Survey of Student Engagement Results
Strategic Context
National, State, and Local Context
ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity is well poised to provide training in the skillsthat are critical for graduates who will be successful in achieving their career aspirations and who will serve as positive role models in Atlanta’s Southern Crescent region. The University has a renowned Instructional Technology Program and has been recognized as the most diverse ComprehensiveBachelorsUniversity in the southern United States[1]. The University is committed, through its mission, to programming that is appropriate for and tailored to diverse audiences.
The demand for technologically skilled college graduates is particularly high in the Southern Crescent region of Georgia. The region has been experiencing explosive population growth since the early 1990s, and data indicate that this growth trend will continue into the foreseeable future (Figure 1). Projections suggest that the south metro-Atlanta area will experience a 26.37% population growth by the year 2010, compared to an 18.93% growth statewide[2]. This population growth parallelsthe rapid growth of those professions and industries that employ college graduates with strong technological skills.
Rapid population growth in the Southern Crescent region has already pushed ClaytonState’s enrollment to unprecedented levels. The opening of new public schools in all surrounding communities ensures that this enrollment trend will continue and that student demand for baccalaureate degree programs will remain high. The burgeoning demand for baccalaureate degrees in the service area is illustrated by the fact that all of the baccalaureate programs that ClaytonState has added during the past few years (e.g., biology, psychology, and criminal justice) have seen rapid enrollment growth.
ClaytonCollege & StateUniversityhas an opportunity to play a very important role in nationwide strategies to alleviate current and anticipated critical shortages in many fields. For example, a recent report estimates that 60% of all new jobs in the 21st century will require skills possessed by only 20% of the current workforce[3]. American students, in general, and economically disadvantaged students, in particular, are losing ground to the rest of the world in fields that require advanced technological skills and knowledge[4]. This Enrollment Management Plan is designed to chart a path forClaytonCollege & StateUniversitywhereby the university will be able to recruit and retain to graduation those students who have the highest potential to succeed in fields experiencing critical shortages, particularly those requiring technologically prepared college graduates. The plan will help bring ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity to the forefront of a national effort to ensure that the U.S. maintains a competitive edge in the global economy of the 21st century.
Figure 1: Population growth projections for Georgia counties[5]. Many of the counties with highest expected population growth are within the service region of ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity.
Student Profiles
Table 1 shows characteristics of the ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity student population for Fall 2004. During Fall 2004, 50.8% of the students were classified as full-time, 48.6% of the students were black, 30.5% of the students were freshmen, 70.1% of the students were female. In Fall 2003, 52.6% of the students were determined to have financial need, and 55% of the students were first-generation college students. These data show that the typical student who attends ClaytonState is an 18-24 year-old female ethnic minority who has financial need and is a first-generation college student.
The characteristics and size of the student population at ClaytonState have changed dramatically over the history of the institution. For example, as the total enrollment at ClaytonState has grown (Figure 2), the percentage of minority students has also increased substantially (Figure 3). The percentage of male students has remained below 40% for the past eight years and has been decreasing continuously since Fall 1999 (Figure 4). The percentage of full-time students attending Clayton State has been increasing slowly over time, and passed the 50% mark in Fall 2004 (Figure 5). The students who are enrolled at ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity predominantly come from the area immediately surrounding the university (Figure 6).
Table 1: The Fall 2004 student population at ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity.
Category / Number / PercentTotal Enrollment / 5,954
Full-Time or Part-Time Status
Part Time / 2,928 / 49.2
Full Time / 3,026 / 50.8
Gender
Female / 4,176 / 70.1
Male / 1,778 / 29.9
Ethnic Group
White / 2,279 / 38.3
African-American / 2,892 / 48.6
Asian or Pacific Islander / 273 / 4.6
Multiracial / 343 / 5.8
Hispanic / 145 / 2.4
American Indian or Alaskan Native / 22 / 0.4
AgeRange
Under 18 / 27 / 0.4
18-24 / 2,754 / 46.3
25-34 / 1,799 / 30.2
35-50 / 1,242 / 20.9
51 and over / 132 / 2.2
Class Standing
Freshman / 1,818 / 30.5
Sophomore / 1,308 / 22.0
Junior / 1,274 / 21.4
Senior / 1,503 / 25.2
New Student Enrollment
Joint Enrollment / 21 / 1.4
Beginning Freshmen / 731 / 48.3
Transfer / 724 / 47.8
Other / 39 / 2.6
College or School
Arts & Sciences / 2,245 / 37.7
Technology / 1,016 / 17.1
Business / 1,058 / 17.8
Health Sciences / 1,217 / 20.4
Information and Mathematical Sciences / 418 / 7.0
Financial Aid Status[†]
Students Applying for Need-Based Aid / 3674 / 64.7
Students Determined to Have Financial Need / 2987 / 52.6
Students Awarded Financial Aid / 2818 / 49.6
Full Pell Eligible Students / 1117 / 19.7
Partial Pell Eligible Students / 3673 / 64.7
Total Pell Eligible Students / 4790 / 84.3
Father’s Educational Attainment[‡]
Did not finish high school / 1,219 / 21.5
Graduated from high school / 1,929 / 34.0
Attended college, no degree / 871 / 15.3
Completed Associate's degree / 536 / 9.4
Completed Bachelor's degree / 790 / 13.9
Completed Master's degree / 268 / 4.7
Completed Doctoral degree / 67 / 1.2
Mother’s Educational Attainment‡
Did not finish high school / 1,098 / 19.3
Graduated from high school / 1,996 / 35.1
Attended college, no degree / 1,045 / 18.4
Completed Associate's degree / 536 / 9.4
Completed Bachelor's degree / 777 / 13.7
Completed Master's degree / 241 / 4.2
Completed Doctoral degree / 27 / 0.5
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Figure 2: Thetotal headcount student enrollment through the history ofClaytonCollege & StateUniversity.
Figure 3: Ethnicity of the student enrollment at ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity. The percentage of minority students has been increasing from 1990 to 2004.
Figure 4: Male student enrollment at ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity. The percentage of male students has been decreasing from 1999 to 2004.
Figure 5: The percentage of full-time students attending ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity. An overall increase in full-time percentage is observed between 1990 and 2004.
Enrollment by GeorgiaCountyCounty / Fall 1999 / Fall 2000 / Fall 2001 / Fall 2002 / Fall 2003
Clayton / 1,433 / 1,388 / 1,495 / 1,608 / 1,674
Henry / 711 / 723 / 725 / 830 / 938
Fulton / 476 / 469 / 527 / 573 / 606
Dekalb / 313 / 345 / 366 / 445 / 506
Fayette / 455 / 417 / 416 / 442 / 446
Rockdale / 153 / 178 / 150 / 158 / 160
Coweta / 136 / 125 / 117 / 130 / 157
Spalding / 82 / 91 / 95 / 111 / 112
Gwinnett / 43 / 48 / 54 / 62 / 61
Newton / 51 / 38 / 39 / 46 / 55
Cobb / 48 / 46 / 46 / 44 / 47
Other / 416 / 461 / 525 / 626 / 757
Total / 4,317 / 4,329 / 4,555 / 5,075 / 5,519
Figure 6: The distribution of total student headcount enrollment at ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity by Georgia county. Approximately 2.5% of the total enrollment originates fromoutside of the state of Georgia.
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Admissions and Recruitment Patterns and Trends
Table 1 shows that ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity enrolls significant numbers of three distinct student populations: traditional new freshmen, non-traditional students and transfer students. The numberof admission applications received from these students typically varies both in time and in space. For example, traditional freshmen tend to submit applications relatively early in the year, whereas transfer and non-traditional students dominate later applicants (Figure 7). Students who are better prepared for college work, as indicated by average SAT-Total, ACT-Composite, high school GPA, and freshman index, tend to submit applications both early and late in the fall application period (Figure 8). These data could indicate that the late applicant pool includes a high proportion of students who have been denied entry into other universities with higher admission standards. However, financial aid data show that a very high proportion of all students who enroll at Clayton College & State University select the university as a first option (Figure 9).
Both new student applications and new student enrollment are higher in fall semesterscompared to spring semesters (Figure 10). Fall applications have risen steadily since Fall 2001, whereas spring applications have remained fairly constant since Spring 2003. The fate of new student applications has varied significantly over the last several years (Figure 11). For example, the percentage of incomplete applications has increased dramatically from a low of 5.9% in Fall 2001 to 32.0% in Spring 2005. The percentage of applications that result in new student enrollment (the application “yield”) has decreased in recent years to 27.7% in Spring 2005. Similarly, there has been a slight decline in the percentage of new student applicants who have been admitted to the university from a peak of 52.7% in Spring 2004 to below 50% in Spring 2005.
Most of the students who enroll at ClaytonCollege & StateUniversitycometo the university from five counties (Clayton, Fulton, Henry, Dekalb, and Fayette; Figure 12) and 28 high schools (Figure 13). The feeder counties represent a wide range of ethnic diversity (Figure 14) and student preparation, as indicated by average SAT-Total, ACT-Composite, high school GPA, and freshman index (Figure 15). Also, the dominant new student type (traditional new freshmen vs. transfers vs. non-traditional students) varies significantly from county to county (Figure 16). Although the percentage of male students who enroll at ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity varies substantially from county to county, male student enrollment is relatively low for all feeder counties (Figure 17).
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Figure 7: New student type by application date for Fall 2004. These data include all new students who enrolled at ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity in Fall 2004. Early applicants tend to be traditional freshmen, while later applicants tend to be non-traditional and transfer students.
Figure 8: Average SAT-Total, ACT-Composite, high school GPA and Freshman Index (500 × high school GPA + SAT-Total) by application date for Fall 2004. These data include all new students who enrolled at ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity in Fall 2004. The data suggest that early and late applicants tend to be better prepared for college work than students submitting applications toward the middle of the applicationperiod.
Figure 9: The percentage of enrolled financial aid applicants indicating that ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity is a first, second, third, fourth, fifth, or last choice for an institution to attend for college. The vast majority of all enrolled students indicate that ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity was their top choice.
Figure 10: The number of new student applications and enrolled new students by semester from Fall 2001 to Spring 2005. New student applications and enrollment are generally higher in the fall semesters than spring. Fall applications have increased steadily, while spring applications have remained constant in recent years.
Figure 11: The fate of new student applications by semester from Fall 2001 to Spring 2005. Incomplete applications have increased substantially in recent years. The percentages of admitted and enrolled students have decreased slightly since Spring 2004
Figure 12: The number of new students enrolled at ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity in Fall 2004 who come to the university from specific Georgia counties. The vast majority of all students come from Clayton, Henry, Fulton, Dekalb and Fayette counties.
Figure 13: The number of new students enrolled at ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity in Fall 2004 who attended specificGeorgiahigh schools. The vast majority of all students come from the 28 high schools shown in this figure.
Figure 14: The ethnic makeup of students from different Georgia counties who enrolled at ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity for the first time in Fall 2004.
Figure 15: Average SAT-Total, ACT-Composite, high school GPA and Freshman Index (500 × high school GPA + SAT-Total) by county for Fall 2004. These data include all new students who enrolled at ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity in Fall 2004.
Figure 16: New student type by county for Fall 2004. These data include all new students who enrolled at ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity in Fall 2004.
Figure 17: The percentage of new students who are males by county for Fall 2004. These data include all new students who enrolled at ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity in Fall 2004.
Figure 18: Retention of first-time, full-time freshmen at ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity. An overall increase in retention is observed from 1990-2003.
Figure 19: Graduation rates for first-time, full-time freshmen at ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity. “System-wide” rates indicate students who originally matriculated at ClaytonCollege & StateUniversity and then graduated from any university in the University System of Georgia. The trend in graduation rates parallels the trend in freshman retention for the same cohort groups.
Figure 20: Comparisons of retention rates for first-time full-time freshmen from the freshman to sophomore years (year 1 to year 2), sophomore to junior years (year 2 to year 3) and junior to senior years (year 3 to year 4).
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Enrollment, Retention, and Graduation Trends
The freshman retention rates and six-year graduation rates for ClaytonState have been historically low (Figures 18, 19). Although freshman retention has increased since 1990, currently, ClaytonState’s retention and graduation rates are the lowest of all the state universities in the University System of Georgia. Retention and graduation rates are also substantially below averages for public baccalaureate institutions with comparable admissions standards (72.5% retention rate; 41.1% graduation rate)[6]. Although retention of the freshman cohort increases after the first year, even retention rates from year 3 to year 4 (junior retention) are generally below 75% (Figure 20). There are a number of factors that affect the retention and graduation rates at the university. First and foremost, ClaytonState is primarily a commuter campus, and National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) results discussed below indicate that, as a result, students spend substantial amounts of time dealing with non-academic issues off campus. Lack of engagement in academic work is known to affect student retentionadversely [7].
Detailed analyses of historical freshman retention patterns show that most freshmen who leave the university do so after the second semester. In fact, freshman retention to the Spring semester approaches 90% (Figure 21). Students who are better prepared for college work, as indicated by freshman index, are more likely to be retained than less prepared students (Figure 22). With rare exception, males and females have been retained at approximately the same level (Figure 23) since 1998. Retention of ethnic minorities has dropped over the past several years, while white student retention has increased (Figure 24). Finally, data on students who leave the university and then return within three years (“stop-outs”) shows that most students who leave the university after the first year do not return to the university (Figure 25).
Detailed analyses of the Fall 2003 cohort retention rate (Figure 26) indicate that the following groups of students have very low retention rates compared to other student groups: black students, other minority students, learning support students, and students with freshman index less than 2300. These groups all have freshman retention rates of less than 55%, and because the retention rates are much lower than for other groups, must be considered “at risk.” In addition, based on the<55% retention rate definition of “at risk” students, students who initially declare majors in the School of Information and Mathematical Sciences and the School of Technology must also be considered “at risk” (Figure 27). Although the College of Information and Mathematical Sciences has a high percentage of students with low freshman index, other schools (particularly the School of Health Sciences) havemuch higher percentages other “at risk” groups (Figure 28). These data indicate that the school of a student’s initial major is an independent factor that helps determine the likelihood that the student will or will not be retained to the next year.
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Figure 21: Comparison of first-time, full-time freshman cohort retention rates for fall to spring and fall to fall time periods (the latter data are from Figure 18). The data indicate that first-time, full-time freshmen are predominantly lost to the university over the spring to fall transition (i.e., over the summer).
Figure 22: Comparison of freshman cohort retention rates for students with freshman index (F.I.) of less than 2300, 2300 to 2700, and greater than 2700. The data indicate that a student with a freshman index of greater than 2300 is much more likely to be retained to the sophomore year than a student with a freshman index less than 2300.
Figure 23: Comparison of freshman cohort retention rates for males and females. With the exception of the Fall 2001 cohort, there is very little difference between male and female retention.