Appendix

Special Notice: Florida State College — Drug Education Policy 
Crime Awareness and Campus Security 
Graduation Rate Report 

Graduation Rates
Transfer Out Rates
Athletically-Related Aid Graduation Rates

Graduation Rates

The overall graduation rate is also known as the “Student Right to Know” or IPEDS graduation rate. It tracks the progress of students who began their studies as full-time, first-time degree- or certificate-seeking students, created as a cohort at the beginning of every Fall term, to see if they earn a degree or other award such as a certificate within 150% of “normal time” for completing the program in which they are enrolled. This cohort is then adjusted to exclude students who are deceased, or who have left school to join the military or the Peace Corp, or to travel as a church missionary. The residual student set is known as the Adjusted Cohort.

The Graduation Rate for two-year institutions is tracked over a three-year period; for four-year institutions, it is tracked over a six-year period. Because the same cohort is tracked over two different time periods, the exclusions counts will differ between the two methods as more students are found as exclusions over time. This will cause the Adjusted Cohort size to decrease over time.

Note that not all students at the institution are tracked for these rates. Students who have already attended another postsecondary institution, who began their studies on a part-time basis, or who are not pursuing a degree- or certificate-seeking program are not tracked.

Transfer Out Rates

The transfer-out rate is the percentage of the full-time, first-time students from the GRS cohort who transferred to another institution prior to completion of the student’s chosen certificate or degree program. 

Athletically-Related Aid Graduation Rates

The athletically-related aid graduation rate is another component of the “Student Right to Know” graduation rate. It tracks the progress of students who receive athletically-related financial aid, created as a cohort at the beginning of every Fall term, to see if they earn a degree or other award such as a certificate within 150% of “normal time” for completing the program in which they are enrolled. Athletically-related student aid includes any scholarship, grant, or other form of financial assistance, the terms of which require the recipient to participate in a program of intercollegiate athletics at an institution of higher education in order to be eligible to receive that assistance.