"Growing up, I don’t remember seeing many women of color in roles I wanted to be in, so I need to be that face for other kids. I never thought I could actually get here, a master's student, and now I have."
- Stephanie Watson-Cruz, UNC Chapel Hill (Reichard, 2015)
While minority student enrollment in postsecondary education is nearly proportionate to the percentage of high school graduates by race, minority students attend four-year institutions, enroll as full-time students, and complete their degrees at lower rates than their peers.
(Nagaoka, Roderick, & Coca, 2009) Progress in high school completion, college aspirations, and college access for minority students have been made in recent years, but the central problem is that rising aspirations have not translated into similar increases in graduation rates. Each and every student has a different situation, but three areas for improvement include increasing student's academic preparation for college, guidance throughout the college search process, and counseling on financial aid resources (Nagaoka et al., 2009). With higher dropout rates among minority students, colleges need to reach out to students who may be struggling and provide resources for success. |
Graduation Rates
With the exception of Asian students, minority college students are more likely to drop out than their white peers. It is important to note that while low graduation rates are pervasive among minority groups, each student has unique circumstances. College preparation, financial aid resources, family responsibilities, institutional resources, and support systems can all play a role in a whether a student completes his or her degree.
The Education Trust identified two Virginia schools as top-performing institutions for black students, George Mason University and Old Dominion University. At these schools, black graduation rates are above average at 65.7% and 53.1% respectively. |