For many higher education institutions, certifying degree completion is both challenging and time consuming. Depending on the size of the institution, graduation processing can take multiple staff days to complete. In an age of limited staffing, registrars must leverage technology to handle these increasing workloads. Such was the case with a…

The State University of Iowa held inaugural commencement practices in 1857--a mere eleven years after Iowa became a state. The flagship, now named the University of Iowa (UI), has a long and storied commencement history. Commencements have been cancelled. They have been postponed. They have been displaced. But they have never been virtual…until…

Oakland University (OU) in Rochester, Michigan, was experiencing growing pains. The good news was that OU had experienced 23 years of continuous enrollment growth, with student enrollment exceeding 20,000 in 2015 for the first time ever. The downside was that various administrative processes throughout the university were straining to keep up. One…

Many people view commencement from the outside: a wonderful celebration of academic achievement and a time to celebrate graduates' accomplishments. By contrast, the commencement coordinator analyzes and implements each of the smaller parts that culminate in graduates crossing the stage and throwing their caps. The perfect commencement is…

This article presents the development, testing, and application of an enrollment model. The model incorporates incoming freshman enrollment class size and historical persistence, transfer, and graduation rates to predict a six-year enrollment window and associated annual graduate production. The model predicts six-year enrollment to within 0.67…

This article describes efforts to improve retention and graduation rates at the University of Texas at San Antonio, a large Hispanic serving institution (HSI). One college within the university is focusing on increasing retention and graduation rates primarily by building relationships and capitalizing on university resources. In addition to…

Spring is a time for gardening, blossoms, and baseball. At American college and universities, it is also a time for commencement ceremonies. Students are recognized for their scholastic achievements as faculty and staff close out another academic school year. Family and friends applaud the graduates and celebrate their success. Students show their…

To process graduation information and provide graduating students with a timely diploma and transcript, a new concept involving computer-assisted posting of undergraduate degree information was developed and implemented at Brigham Young. The graduation evaluation process and the computer assistance used to monitor, compile, evaluate, and report…

Thirty-three universities were surveyed by the University of Arizona to see who was responsible for the process of evaluating students' remaining degree requirements, how much of this process was automated or computerized, and who in each institution responds to the Higher Education General Information Survey. Results are presented. (MSE)

The use of colors in tassels and hood trimmings to signify the subject areas of degrees is discussed, and variations in this practice are described. Whether the color of the hood trimming should indicate the major subject studied or the subject area incorporated in the title of the degree is debated. (MLW)

A study examined community college and four-year-college faculty attitudes concerning the quality of transfer students before and after a series of workshops on transfer education. The study focused on questions of instruction and faculty perceptions of students in different academic environments. (MSE)

In growing numbers, older women persist in pursing bachelor's degrees, although they most likely encounter significant obstacles along the path to completion and earn less than their male counterparts after graduating. The purpose of this interview. based study of twelve such women was to examine why they persisted and what value they placed on…

Reports results of a study of the characteristics, educational background, and academic achievement of 3,948 transfer students to the University of Missouri. Findings are reported in terms of student demographics and previous higher education experience, characteristics of transfer students who graduated, interaction effects in the graduate group,…