Student Achievement

Florida State College at Jacksonville identifies, evaluates, and publishes goals and outcomes for student achievement, that are appropriate to the College’s mission, to the nature of the students it serves, and to the kinds of programs offered by the College. FSCJ uses multiple measures to document student success.

Adopted by the College’s Executive Leadership Team, the College has identified four measures to document student success: 1) IPEDS graduation rate, 2) fall-to-fall persistence rate (formerly retention rate), 3) institutionally calculated graduation rates, and 4) completion of gateway English and/or gateway mathematics course within first year.

Mission, Strategic Priorities, and FCS Performance Funding Model

The student achievement outcomes identified by FSCJ are appropriate to the College's mission statement, which is “Florida State College at Jacksonville provides an equitable, high quality, success-driven learning experience for our diverse community of students.” as well as the vision statement for the College, which is “To promote intellectual growth for life-long learning, advance the economic mobility of our students and transform the communities we serve.” An extension of the College’s mission is the 2021-24 Visionary Impact Plan. Three of the five strategic priorities identified within the plan focused on students:

1. Enrollment: Expand access to and support persistence in postsecondary education serving all student populations
2. Service: Enhance and deliver an exceptional student and employee experience to create a sense of belongingness
3. Success: Increase student achievement and success to strengthen opportunities for economic mobility for all students

IPEDS Graduation Rate

The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) provides basic data needed to describe and analyze trends in postsecondary education. IPEDS collects data on the number of students who complete a postsecondary education program. As evidenced through the five years of data provided in the table below, the College’s minimum IPEDS graduation rate was 35% (2018) and the maximum was 40% (2021). Using linear projection modeling, the achievement goal for the overall IPEDS graduation rate for FSCJ is 41%. The threshold of acceptability for this measure is 30%, which is the minimum graduation rate that was reported in the 2011 IPEDS feedback report, the lowest graduation rate by the College over the previous ten-year timeframe.

Institutionally Calculated Graduation Rates

To align FSCJ’s accreditation and Achieving the Dream (ATD) work, the College has identified its institutional calculated graduate rates as students earning a certificate or degree within the four years (200% of time to completion) of initial enrollment. To calculate this metric, a cohort of students must be defined. For purposes of this student achievement measure, the College has defined the cohort as students new to FSCJ (first-time, in college, first-time in college after dual enrollment, and first-time transfer to FSCJ). Referencing the five years of institutionally calculated graduation rates provided, the minimum rate was 31.4% (fall 2018 cohort) and the maximum was 38.2% (fall 2014 cohort). Using linear projection modeling, a 38.8% achievement goal for institutionally calculated graduation rates would represent substantial progress. Using the most recent representative years, fall 2014 cohort through fall 2018 cohort, the threshold of acceptability has been identified as an institutionally calculated graduation rate of 30.7%.

Five-Years of Institutionally Calculated Graduation Rates for 200% Time to Completion

Fall-to-Fall Persistence Rate

To align FSCJ’s accreditation and Achieving the Dream (ATD) work, the College has identified its fall-to-fall persistence rate (formerly retention rate) as an additional measure of student success. To calculate persistence, a cohort of students must be defined. For persistence purposes, the College has defined the cohort as students enrolled in credit or clock-hour bearing courses in the fall term and registered and paid in a credit or clock-hour bearing course in the following fall. Removed from the cohort are completers within the first term up to, and including, the persistence term, transient students, and non-degree seeking students.

Referencing the five years of retention data provided, the minimum rate was 48% (fall 2016 to fall 2017) and the maximum was 55% (fall 2018 to fall 2019 and fall 2020 to fall 2021). Using linear projection modeling, a 58% achievement goal for fall-to-fall persistence would represent substantial progress. Using the most recent representative years, fall 2016 through fall 2021, the threshold of acceptability has been identified as a fall-to-fall persistence rate of 45%. 

Five-Years of Fall-to-Fall Persistence Rates

Completion of Gateway English and Gateway Mathematics Course within First Year

To align FSCJ’s accreditation and Achieving the Dream (ATD) work, the College has identified student completion of gateway English and/or gateway mathematics courses within the first year as a student achievement metric. To calculate this metric, a cohort of students must be defined. For purposes of this student achievement measure, the College has defined the cohort as students new to FSCJ (first-time in college, first-time in college after dual enrollment, and first-time transfer to FSCJ). Referencing the five years of data provided, the minimum rate for completion of gateway English and a gateway mathematics course was 41% and 36%, respectively. The maximum rate for completion of gateway English and a gateway mathematics course was 47% and 40%, respectively. Using linear projection modeling, a 42% achievement goal for completion of a gateway mathematics course within the first year, and a 48% achievement goal for completion of gateway English within the first year would represent substantial progress. Using the most recent representative years, fall 2017 through fall 2021, the threshold of acceptability has been identified as 33% completion of a gateway mathematics course and a 39% completion of gateway English within the first year.

Five-Years of Completion of gateway English and/or Gateway Mathematics Courses within First Year

Contact Information

Email  StateReporting@fscj.edu