Graduation Rates and Time-To-Degree Strategies

January 14, 2016

Dear Advisors: 

Supporting the success of our students is fundamental to fulfilling the educational mission of UC Berkeley. Our campus has engaged in a number of efforts to improve undergraduate student outcomes, including graduation rates and time-to-degree. These efforts have shown promising results — the percentage of undergraduates who enter Berkeley as freshmen who complete their studies within four years and transfer students who complete their degree within two years has steadily improved over the last decade. However, more work can and should be done to improve graduation rates overall and close achievement gaps for our students. 

As advisors, your work is a critical component of our efforts to improve student success. You help students transition to and navigate through UC Berkeley, choose a major and understand degree requirements, and overcome obstacles that might hinder them from completing their degree in a timely way. As we continue forward in our efforts to improve student success, you play an important role in advancing the most promising advising practices and innovations that support timely graduation of our students.

A report highlighting examples of advising strategies from each of the UC campuses that have shown promise in supporting the timely graduation and success of undergraduate students is available online at: http://www.ucop.edu/institutional-research-academic-planning/_files/Advising_strategies.pdf. We encourage you to review this report, discuss it with your colleagues, and adopt those strategies that will best meet the needs of Berkeley students. Thank you for your continued dedication to Berkeley’s excellence, our students, and our educational mission. 

Sincerely,

Claude Steele, Executive Vice Chancellor & Provost
Catherine P. Koshland, Vice Chancellor for Undergraduate Education