Running head: GLOBAL ISSUE REPORT 1

Global Issues Report:

College Graduation Rates

Abraham Apodaca

RWS 1301

Dr. Vierra

Oct. 31, 2018

GLOBAL ISSUES REPORT 2

Abstract

Graduation rates have been apart of history for century’s, dating back to the very first

university or college. Graduation rates in universities rise and drop every semester, it is not

common for a school to have a graduation rate of 100%. This is due to the many factors that can

affect rates across the world. Starting with mental illness, anxiety, financial stability and even

being a minority. This report will go into depth with all the possible factors that alter or affect

graduation rates locally and even globally.

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Introduction

Graduation rates have been a part of the American education system since the first

graduating class back in the 1800s. Graduation rates are data of graduating students that give a

university or college the credibility and ranking that all universities hope for. Knowing the

significance of graduation rates around the world can help provide the information needed to see

where the world stands and just what the graduation rates are worldwide.

Discussion

Mental health has a huge impact on graduation rates, this is because many students suffer

from anxiety and depression, these health issues do distract them from their studies. According to

Kurtovic (2018) results showed that external control lower self-liking and self-competence, as

well as less problem-focused and more emotion-focused this then leading to predict more

symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress on students. On the other hand, Ruzhenkova (2018)

states that from 45% to 83% of students had suicidal thoughts, the most significant stress

situations for medical students are sessions and examinations. Many students had a hard time in

college due to the high study load and the need to prepare for class for the following day, he

continues to explain that more that 50% of students were sleep deprived. This caused many

students to turn to other substances (p.1172). This is further explained in Bailey (2006) by

explain the percentages of students who do not complete education due to medical issues and

mental health Through his researched he found that 1 in 6 students suffer from a mental illness

and 1 in 11 do not graduate higher level education due to medical issues (p.47). This clearly

shows how a student's mental health can affect their studies thus affecting the graduation rates.

Mental health can be seen in many or even most communities, it is not rare for someone

to suffer from a mental illness, especially students who are trying hard to succeed in such a
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competitive environment. In Ruzenkova (2018) it is established that those entering medical

schools are characterized by a high level of stress and anxiety, and in the first 3 years of study,

their strengthening is observed. So literally students are pushed beyond barriers to see if they

really have the strength for this career, sometimes even leading students to fail or drop out. Of

course, this affects the graduation rates of the schools and also gives students a tough battle. This

is backed up by Hinrichs (2014) by explaining the flaws of the American education system and

going into depth on how important it is for a student to be healthy. One in four students have a

diagnosable illness, and it is common for student to ignore or keep these problems to themselves,

it is even stated that 40% do not seek help (p.42).

Mental health affects the graduation rates of UTEP, it is explained in Lester Holt (2018)

through his research with the RAND Corporation that explains that any University or college

will have a good number of students who suffer from stress, ADHD and other serious illnesses.

Holt believes that universities should have clubs assigned for students struggling with these

illnesses and explains this could help by closely examining over 400 campuses he finds that club

“Active Minds” increases awareness, decreases stigma, and changes behaviors for students. He

explains that this could be because of the environment that a student is presented too and how it

could change and better the student struggling with mental health issues in as quickly as a year.

Perez (2006) and Jorge Gomez (2009) both explain that the UTEP campus could do so much

better if students expressed their opinions and feelings. Perez (2006) then goes on to show

interviews done by the UTEP SGA and they have developed a plan that they believe will boost

up UTEP graduation rates by quite a lot. SGA interview students to see what they believe can

help them out during their college career at UTEP (p.11). Gomez (2009) did a similar research

but he gathered research from first semester freshmen to seniors, they explain one of the main
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factors that would influence students and boost the rate should be to offer a little more

scholarships, internships and leadership opportunities. By the interviews they got from the

students they believe these three opportunities could boost up student involvement and help

students feel more comfortable and motivated.

Graduation rates affect the local community at UTEP. According to Jorge Gomez (2009)

in fall 2007 the University of Texas at El Paso reached a student enrollment that surpassed

20,000 students for the first time in history, and that 4,000 of those students were freshmen.

(p.11). Jorge Gomez researched the graduation rates of UTEP and from his research he states

that out of those 4,000 freshmen, 600 will graduate in 5 years and 1,000 within 10 years. Sadly,

there are a huge number of students who will not complete the education cause UTEP to drop in

graduation rates (p.11). Hamilton (2012) eschews commonly accepted higher-education

measures like graduation rates, which show that just one out of 10 freshmen entering UTEP will

graduate within four years. (p21A). Hamilton seeks to find what determines a university’s

success. Therefore, since UTEP is a university and graduation rates affect a university very

much, graduation rates are taken seriously at UTEP. Unfortunately, not every student succeeds at

completing their education and this leads to graduation rates dropping further than expectations.

graduation rates at UTEP could be low due to the acceptance rate of 97% that the university has

(p.21).

Diversity affects graduation rates, according to Bailey (2006) studied schools from the

year 2004-2007 to see if a minority group still exists and is still affecting the life of students. He

claims that diversity has always been an issue for some students, since the world to him is “racist

and unfair,” he believes students should not have to worry about these ridiculous issues that just

pile on everything else that a student has going on. Although diversity is still present in today’s
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society, his tudies show a huge increase in just 5 years, from 17.5% in 2004 to 40.8% in 2007

nationwide (p.45). They also go into depth with how minorities still many problems with

education like any other student have, with life getting in the way it makes it a little more tough.

Marriage, work, kids and even income can affect a student's path to graduation. This is further

explained in Millea (2018) by her suggest that there are many factors that affect a single student

but there are an overall number of problems that affect the entire student body. By evaluating

residential living, attendance programs, demographic attributes, average class size and student

academic preparation (p. 317). Therefore, this shows how diversity is still existent in the

education system, and they explain just how that could be possible and how it affects a student in

higher level education and even high school education. Millea showed some probity regression

models that indicated that graduation rates were higher for students who were academically

prepared, received grants or scholarships, and were in smaller classes.

Graduation rates will keep rising in the United States. This is explained in OECD (2016)

stated that it dropped from 6.1% to 4.6%, the author explains that the united states have one of

the best education rates behind New Zealand and China. According to the author countries like

Costa Rica, Mexico and Brazil have some of the lowest graduation rates in the world. He

believes its due to finances, many students in the United States fail at getting education because

of finances. The estimated graduation rate worldwide (2016) would be around 76-85%

graduated (Indicator A7). It is also supported by Hayward (2014) and explains the purpose of the

current study was to examine graduate rates by PLA status and method used in 4 states of the

United States, results from this foundational study confirmed a remarkable difference (p.47).

Thus, showing that graduation rates have kept rising in the recent years and according to studies

the rates will keep rising.

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Many universities do not take their students seriously. This is explained in Jennings

(1994) by stating the disadvantages that many students must face. Sadly, not every school or

campus treats students equal and fair, and they believe this can change, they believe it has a lot to

do with locations and the leadership (p.285). They explain how native Americans have an

excellent education system that benefits all (p.289). These locations offered students doorways

that are not open in other campuses, they also enforce students to speak their native language no

matter what it is. Also stated in Trani and Irvine (2014) by stressing the fact that the old system

is made for students to fail. Randy and Irvine explain how they believe the system can be

handled and fixed they give many examples to show just how the system is made to fail. This

shows how some schools do not respect or take the students seriously.

Conclusion

Graduation rates at universities and colleges can be affected by numerous factors.

Graduation rates rise and drop at a steady paste and vary by location and by college. Lower

graduation rates mean less educated people and as a thriving society, that is an issue. If

graduation rates would not be taken seriously then many universities worldwide could fail. If the

education system isn’t taken seriously students could be signing up for failure.
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References

Chen, Y., Chen, Y., & Oztekin, A. (2017). A hybrid data envelopment analysis approach to

analyze college graduation rate at higher education institutions. INFOR, 55(3), 188–210.

https://doi.org/10.1080/03155986.2016.1262584

Gomez, J. (2009, March 26). Graduation rates at UTEP, a slow train to the future. The

Prospector, 11-12.

Hamilton, R. (2012, March 2). At UTEP, Success Is Not All About Graduation Rates. New York

Times, p. 21A. Retrieved from

http://0search.ebscohost.com.lib.utep.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=7220205

3&site=ehost-live&scope=site

Hinrichs, P. (2014). Affirmative action bans and college graduation rates. Economics of

Education Review, 42, 43–52. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.econedurev.2014.06.005

Jennings, L. M. and Shepro, C. E. (1994). Local Control of Post-Secondary Education, in

Vincent D’Oyley, Education And Development (pp. 285-308). Alberta, Canada: Detselig

Enterprises Ltd.

MILLEA, M., WILLS, R., ELDER, A., & MOLINA, D. (2018). What Matters in College

Student Success? Determinants of College Retention and Graduation

Rates. Education, 138(4), 309–322. Retrieved from http://0-

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&site= ehost- live&scope=site

OECD (Ed.), Education at a glance 2016: OECD indicators. Paris, France: Organization for

Economic Cooperation and Development. Retrieved from http://0-

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centives_to_invest_in_education_indicator_a7/0?institutionId=9821
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Perez, S, E. (2006, Sep 27). UTEP 2015 plan seeks to boost graduation rates, The Prospector, p7-

p8.

Scott, M., Bailey, T., & Kienzl, G. (2006). Relative Success? Determinants of College

Graduation Rates in Public and Private Colleges in the U.S. Research in Higher

Education, 47(3), 249–279. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11162-005-9388-y

State Universities That Are Making the Most Progress in Improving the Graduation Rates of

Minority Students. (2010). The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education, (67), 45.

Retrieved from http:// 0search.ebscohost.com.lib.utep.edu

/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edsjsr&AN=edsjsr.20722211&site=eds-live&scope=site

Trani, R. T, and Irvine, R. K. (2014). Built to Fail: Structural Deficiencies And Student Failure.

Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield.

Winters, J. V. (2018). Do higher college graduation rates increase local education levels? Papers

in Regional Science, 97(3), 617–638. https://doi.org/10.1111/pirs.12258

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Figures

This is a bar graph representing the graduation rates around the world and how they

compare with other countries.

This is a graph explains just how many students actually graduate around the world and

shows from high school to university for each country shown.

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How does educational attainment affect PARTICIPATION IN THE LABOUR

MARKET? (Indicator A5). (2016). In Oecd (Ed.), Education at a glance 2016: OECD indicators.

Paris, France: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Retrieved from

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search.credoreference.com.lib.utep.edu/content/entry/oecdeag/how_does_educational_attainment

_affect_participation_in_the_labour_market_indicator_a5/0?institutionId=9821

How many students complete tertiary education? (Indicator A9). (2016). In Oecd

(Ed.), Education at a glance 2016: OECD indicators. Paris, France: Organisation for Economic

Cooperation and Development. Retrieved from http://0-

search.credoreference.com.lib.utep.edu/content/entry/oecdeag/how_many_students_complete_te

rtiary_education_indicator_a9/0?institutionId=9821