According to a study by Complete College America, most students take about six years to get their bachelor’s degree. However, in most colleges and universities throughout America, a bachelor’s degree is designed to be completed in about four years. The extra two years students spend in school costs an extra $50k on average.
So, where do the two extra years come from, and how can they be avoided?
Complete College America found that two major factors contribute to students not graduating on time:
1. Transferring schools.
When a student transfers schools during the process of obtaining his/her degree, that student often has to do a lot of “catching up” at the new school. Even though this student may be transferring with the same major, it’s not a “one size fits all” deal. Every school has different programs with different courses of study and required prerequisites. The time spent catching up on required courses can easily extend a student’s time at school by more than a year.
How can the risk of transferring be reduced?: While students won’t truly know if a college is right for them until they are there for a while, they can get a pretty good idea if they do some research beforehand. It’s also important for students to really determine what it is that they want out of a college. Small campus or large campus? City or suburbs? If students have a strong understanding of themselves and what kinds of environments they thrive the most in, they’re more likely to pick a school that fits their needs.
2. A lack of a plan.
Many students don’t think much about what they want to major in prior to college and begin as “undecided”. Usually, they declare one within thier first semester or year. However, according to Complete College America, most students end up changing their major at least once. Though this is normal, later it happens in a student’s college career, the longer it takes for that student to graduate.
How can the risk of changing majors be reduced?: First, students need to take more time to reflect on what it is they are interested in doing in the future. What are they passionate about? What are their skills? What careers are best suited for their personal style of doing things? Programs like StoryPathing™ are perfect for guiding students through these times of self-reflection. Thinking about and planning for the future doesn’t have to be scary. The earlier you do it, the more it will pay off!
