1. Graduation Rates
a. Six-Year Graduation Rate (Key Selection Completion Indicator)
All Students
Threshold for Acceptability (TFA): 67%, selected due to this being the average six-year graduation rate for private nonprofit colleges nationwide.
Goal: 75%, selected to ensure that we exceed national graduation rates.
Results:
2018 Cohort (Graduated by 2024): 71.5% (Goal missed, but TFA met)
2017 Cohort (Graduated by 2023): 70.4% (Goal missed, but TFA met)
2016 Cohort (Graduated by 2022): 69.0% (Goal missed, but TFA met)
For Pell-Eligible Students (population identified because of the diversity focus of our mission)
Threshold for Acceptability (TFA): Graduation rate of no more than 7 percentage points below our total population. This is the average institutional gap nationwide.
Goal: Graduation rate of no more than 5 percentage points below population.
Results:
2018 Cohort (Graduated by 2024): 64.7% (Goal missed, TFA met)
2017 Cohort (Graduated by 2023): 64.2% (Goal missed, TFA met)
2016 Cohort (Graduated by 2022): 58.7% (Goal missed, TFA missed)
For Students of Color (population identified because of the diversity focus of our mission)
Threshold for Acceptability (TFA): Graduation rate of no more than 10 points below our total population. This is still narrower than the 18 point average institutional gap nationwide.
Goal: Graduation rate of no more than 5 percentage points below population.
Results:
2018 Cohort (Graduated by 2024): 49.1% (Goal missed, TFA missed)
2017 Cohort (Graduated by 2023): 65.9% (Goal met, TFA met)
2016 Cohort (Graduated by 2022): 56.3% (Goal missed, TFA missed)
b. Four-Year Graduation Rate
All Students
Threshold for Acceptability (TFA): 65%, selected due to this being 10 points above the average four-year graduation rate for private nonprofit colleges nationwide.
Goal: 70%, selected to ensure that we exceed national graduation rates.
Results:
2020 Cohort (Graduated by 2024): 55.0% (Goal missed, TFA missed)
2019 Cohort (Graduated by 2023): 48.3% (Goal missed, TFA missed)
2018 Cohort (Graduated by 2022): 56.6% (Goal missed, TFA missed)
Pell-Eligible Students (population identified because of the diversity focus of our mission)
Threshold for Acceptability (TFA): Graduation rate of no more than 7 percentage points below our total population. This is the average institutional gap nationwide.
Goal: Graduation rate of no more than 5 percentage points below our total population.
Results:
2020 Cohort (Graduated by 2024): 46.7% (Goal missed, TFA missed)
2019 Cohort (Graduated by 2023): 36.3% (Goal missed, TFA missed)
2018 Cohort (Graduated by 2022): 50.6% (Goal missed, TFA met)
Students of Color (population identified because of the diversity focus of our mission)
Threshold for Acceptability (TFA): Graduation rate of no more than 10 points below the total population. This is still narrower than the 18 point average institutional gap nationwide.
Goal: Graduation rate of no more than 5 percentage points below population.
Results:
2020 Cohort (Graduated by 2024): 63.0% (Goal met, TFA met)
2019 Cohort (Graduated by 2023): 48.3% (Goal missed, TFA met)
2018 Cohort (Graduated by 2022): 36.8% (Goal missed, TFA missed)
Analysis
Four-year graduation rates for five years of cohorts (2016 through 2021) have been depressed due to several students who deferred their degrees—electing to return to Transylvania for a fifth year—with the introduction of our Pioneer Plus program. The program was a well-intentioned solution to help our students impacted by the pandemic but had the effect of several students delaying graduation. Although we expect to see four-year graduation rates return to a more normal pattern beginning with the 2022 cohort, we have also adopted strategies to make sure that student success is a priority. The following initiatives are designed to improve student success and graduation rates.
- Embedded Learning Forums (ELFs): This is our Quality Enhancement Plan that was designed to help students become more successful in courses that traditionally have high rates of D, F, and Withdrawn grades, which we believe will have the effect of improving retention and graduation rates as well.
- Jumpstart: This program, introduced for the 2023 entering class and continued for the 2024 entering class, is an intensive effort to ensure that particularly students from populations that traditionally have lower graduation rates are equipped with the tools to be successful.
- Pell Guarantee: Recognizing that we have not met our internal expectations for Pell Grant recipient graduation rates, we introduced a program for the Fall 2023 entering class (which has continued) that allows Pell recipients from Kentucky with at least a 3.3 high school GPA to benefit from a guarantee that tuition and fees will be covered during the entirety of their four years. Early results are promising.
- Maximizing Your College Success Course: This course was introduced as a pilot for the entering class of Fall 2024 and is modeled on a successful “University 1111” class that was taught years ago. Much like Jumpstart, this course is designed to help students connect to campus and all of the resources that are available to them.
- Accelerate: Introduced in 2024, this program allows eligible students the opportunity to complete their Transylvania degree in three years. We expect the benefits of an accelerated degree path not just to benefit those who join the program, but it also helps to improve communication and the culture around completing one’s degree in a reasonable amount of time.
2. Licensing Exams
Two of our programs’ graduates are required to take licensing exams—accounting and education. However, because many accounting students attend graduate school soon after their graduation from Transylvania and CPA exam results are sent to the students’ most recent institutions, we do not have comprehensive tracking data for that exam.
Education PRAXIS Passage Rates
Threshold for Acceptability (TFA): 100%, as the exam is required for employment in the student’s major.
Goal: 100%, as the exam is required for employment in the student’s major.
Results:
2024 Graduates: 100% passage rate (Goal met, TFA met)
2023 Graduates: 100% passage rate (Goal met, TFA met)
2022 Graduates: 100% passage rate (Goal met, TFA met)
Analysis:
The annual PRAXIS passage rate has been 100 percent since the 2008-09 academic year; these data are gathered by the faculty of the Education program.
3. Graduate School Attendance
Threshold for Acceptability (TFA): 30%, as this is likely still higher than the national average, but comparative data are limited.
Goal: 40% of graduating students will enroll within the first two years of graduation; this exceeds national data showing that 39% enroll within four years. If national trends change significantly we will revisit this goal.
Results:
2022 Graduates: 48.7% (Goal met, TFA met)
2021 Graduates: 48.3% (Goal met, TFA met)
2020 Graduates: 42.0% (Goal met, TFA met)
Analysis:
Since 2011, we have tracked enrollment patterns for our graduates using the Student Tracker tool provided by the National Student Clearinghouse. This continues to be a strength.