| Background and Answers to Possible
Questions
The answers the questions posed here are based in large part on detailed answers provided by the Deans office, primarily in response to questions raised by EPC in the spring and fall of this year. Most and possibly all of the statistical information was generated by John Pothier, director of institutional research. The members of the EPC are grateful for the hard work of those in North College in responding to their many questions. 1. Why was the 34-credit requirement originally adopted? 2. How many students graduate upon completion and how many of them accelerate? 4. What would be the enrollment effect of the proposed limit on A.P. credits? 5. How many students use A.P. credits to graduate a semester early? coming soon
The 34 course-credits regulation was adopted by the EPC and the faculty in 1961-62 and took effect in 1963-64. It replaced a system that had been in effect since 1831 that measured course work by recitation or contact hours; 126 hours were required for graduation. The impetus for change came from the sense that this system, after 130 years of use, was considered old-fashioned and outdated. The registrar at the time the change was being considered was Mr. C. Hess Haagen, who consulted peer schools to determine whether they went by an hour or course system and if the latter, then the number required for graduation. Mr. Haagen found that the course system was predominantly used, with 34 courses standard. Wesleyan was, according to Mr. Kerr, one of the last schools among its peers to convert from the recitation hours system. Wesleyan is now one of the few schools among the COFHE cohort that requires 34 courses or their equivalent for graduation. Of the 31 COFHE schools, including Wesleyan, 26 are on a comparable semester system. Of those 26, slightly more than half (14 of 26) require 32 courses or less to graduate. Number of Courses Required for Graduation
The data for upon completion from 1994 to 1997 is given in the table below. Note that "Year 1, Year 2" etc. refers to the years after the graduation ceremony in which graduation requirements were completed.
Completion rates for students only one credit shy of graduation is as
follows:
The majority of students who graduate upon completion leave in eight semesters or, if they are transfer students, in their allotted time. Of the total number of students who graduated upon completion in less than their allotted time over the past five years (N=69), 20% had taken academic leaves. Note that the percentages below include the transfers who completed Wesleyan in their allotted semesters.
Many upon completion students with fewer than eight semesters push up their graduation a semester early in order to walk with their class. For some of these students, financial considerations may also play a part in their decision to leave early in order to avoid a semester’s tuition. Transferring in two or fewer outside credits from a less expensive institution not only circumvents tuition, but can also reduce, if not eliminate acceleration charges. The figures below capture those who exit early and upon completion in order to avoid a semester’s tuition or to avoid or reduce acceleration fees that they would be charged were they not bringing in the additional outside credits needed to both graduate and offset the charge. In other words, rather than graduating with 34 credits in seven semesters and be subject to four acceleration charges, they graduate with 32 so that they can bring in two outside credits to offset two of the four charges.
What one can see is that until this past year, students leaving in less than eight semesters comprised a small percentage of those leaving upon completion. At this point it is too early to tell whether the increase in the percentage of students in the class of 1998 is evidence of students’ growing financial need or is unique to these members of the class. However, it is important to note that acceleration charges for all but one of these upon completion students will be eliminated when they transfer in the remaining credits needed for the diploma.
3. What would be the enrollment effect of the proposed limit on physical education and student forum courses? It is difficult to give a firm answer, but there would be some effect.
Based on data from the classes of 1997 and 1998: 11% of students
earned at least 1.25 credits in Physical Education courses. There
was no significant difference between the classes of 1997 and 1998 in PHED
courses. But in terms of student fora, the class of 1998 took more
than twice as many credits: 122 vs. 56. This is largely due
to a recent surge in student fora (see the following table). The
following tables shows enrollments and credits earned in student fora:
4. What would be the enrollment effect of the proposed limit on A.P. credits? [NB: All references to AP given below are to the total of credits from Advanced Placement (1,449 earned) and International Baccalaureate (15 earned).] Capping the number of Advanced Placement (AP) credits that count toward
the degree at two would affect one in six students (17%) and yield noticeable
increases in enrollment demand. The number of "lost" credits from
the last two classes would be 392 (almost 1% of total in-residence credits),
from the 113 students with three credits losing one each, the 62 with four
credits losing two each, etc. Some of those 392 lost credits might
not affect graduation status, because students with more than 34
credits who are not oversubscribed can absorb losses.
[Note that 219 students or 17% of students earned more than 2 AP credits.] 5. How many students use A.P. credits to graduate a semester early? coming soon
1. The number of semesters reflects the picture of the student's record when the final snapshot of the semester was taken. If there were any changes that occurred after this time, the number of semesters completed would increase. return |
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