Explore this brief to learn how to improve course completion rates in gateway courses and identify root causes.
1. Size the opportunityEach year a significant number of credits are lost due to failing grades and student withdrawals from courses (DFWs). Typically 15%-30% of attempted credits are unsuccessfully completed due to DFWs with some courses reaching DFW rates as high as 60%-80%.
However, course completion rates can be misleading since just a few students failing to complete in low enrollment courses can dramatically impact rates. Institutions should look at courses that have the greatest impact such as high enrollment courses, general education courses, and pre-requisites to majors. Lost credits stem most frequently from lower division courses.
This resource is part of the Facilitate Student-Centered Course Redesign Roadmap. Access the Roadmap for stepwise guidance with additional tools and research.
EAB data finds that while high-DFW courses vary from institution to institution, there is a common set of six courses that tend to have the highest number of uncompleted credits: intro to chemistry, intro to psychology, intro to biology, college algebra, freshman English, and intro to political science.
2. Identify root causesLack of academic preparation frequently prevents students from succeeding in courses. While low high school GPAs and/or low SAT or ACT scores can help identify those students who need additional support, students without such markers may also be at risk. Students with strong high school GPAs who attended academically weak institutions or did not take rigorous courses are often still missing critical study skills.
There are a number…