Student Achievement

The College of Coastal Georgia (Coastal Georgia) evaluates student achievement in line with its mission to provide degrees that support the intellectual, economic, and cultural needs of the community and region while promoting student progression and timely graduation. The College’s commitment to student achievement is specifically evident in one section of its mission statement:

…Advocating excellence in scholarship and community engagement, the College promotes student progression and timely graduation through student-centered programs that offer a rich and diverse student experience. Students are prepared for meaningful careers, advanced study, lifelong learning, and participation in a global and technological society…

Coastal Georgia has identified several metrics for measuring student achievement. Furthermore, these indicators support the institution’s current strategic plan, and, in the process, establish significant but realistic outcomes and determine a time frame for results. These institutional measures and students’ achievement on these measures are presented below.

Completion Rate

The Key Student Completion Indicator (KSCI) is the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center (NSCRC) six-year completion rate, measured from each student’s initial enrollment term. By capturing all post-secondary awards earned (whether at Coastal Georgia or another institution), this measure more fully reflects the College’s contribution to student success. Part-time students represent an important segment of Coastal Georgia’s enrollment, and students frequently change degree levels, transfer, or graduate elsewhere. Tracking outcomes through NSC ensures these students are not lost from view. For each cohort, the NSCRC rate is calculated using the number of students who completed any post-secondary award at any institution and began as new degree-seeking students at Coastal Georgia, whether full- or part-time.

Degrees Awarded

Coastal Georgia’s success as an institution is measured by the degrees it awards to meet workforce demands, address affordability, and increase access to educational opportunities. The number of credentials awarded in a fiscal year by academic program and award level (career associate, transfer associate, and baccalaureate) is retrieved from Degrees and Awards Conferred reports generated by the Office of Research and Policy Analysis of the University System of Georgia.

Retention Rates

Coastal Georgia established retention rate goals using University System of Georgia (USG) data from other state colleges, along with consideration of the institution’s historical performance. This student achievement measure evaluates the retention of first-time, full-time, degree-seeking students within a cohort. For each year, the denominator consists of the fall cohort of full-time, degree-seeking students, as defined by IPEDS. The numerator includes students who either reenrolled the following fall or completed an associate or bachelor’s degree without returning. This definition does not account for all entering students, regardless of prior college experience or educational pathway.

Job Placement/Continuing Education

The U.S. Department of Education considers job placement/continuing education rates essential quality and student achievement indicators. Credible placement/continuing education rates serve students’ best interests. especially those beginning the college application process, and enhance public confidence in the role of accreditation. The Office of Career and Academic Advising uses the National Association of Colleges and Employers’ (NACE) First Destination Survey to capture new Coastal Georgia graduates’ employment and continuing education within six months of graduation (the industry standard).

Student Satisfaction

The Graduating Student Survey allows the College to obtain opinions from seniors just before graduation. Results are used to examine Coastal Georgia’s institutional effectiveness in providing students with a quality educational experience and to identify areas for improvement as part of a continuous quality improvement process.

Professional Licensure/Certification

Graduates’ success in many professional fields, especially in healthcare and teacher education, often requires licensure or certification to practice or enter the workforce; therefore, measuring students’ success in passing licensure and certification exams is a critical indicator of workforce development.

Integration of Student Achievement Goals to Institutional Planning

Coastal Georgia subscribes to an institutional effectiveness structure that is cohesive and comprehensive, and that annually addresses the required assessment and systematic evaluation review cycles for academic programs, academic support units, and administrative support services campus-wide to ensure student achievement and success. In addition, this framework maps and links the units to the institution’s Core Values, Strategic Goals, Strategic Master Plan Priorities, SACSCOC Principles of Accreditation, and Professional Accreditation or Affiliation requirements.

As student success initiatives are implemented and metric results are carefully monitored, the College believes its standards and retention and graduation strategies clearly demonstrate a strong philosophical commitment to graduation with distinction as the overarching campus priority.