An increasing number of university students across Canada are dropping out around Christmas time after their first semester grades are released, according to a study conducted by a University of Western Ontario professor.
The growing number of “Christmas graduates,” as some call them, is explained by the notion that low grades in a student’s first semester at university can be hard to deal with, said professor Todd Stinebrickner.
“Our work examines one particular explanation: that some students drop out because they find that their grade performance will not be as high as they expected when they started school,” Stinebrickner said, adding that about 45 per cent of drop outs that occur early in a student’s university life are due to less than stellar grade performance.
Carleton’s Student Academic Success Centre (SASC) encourages students who are worried about their grades to follow a five-step program built to ensure they complete their program.
The first of the five steps is for students to print an audit, which informs them of their current standing. The second step encourages students to be aware of the functioning of Carleton Central and of the rules surrounding their online accounts. The third and fourth steps of the academic improvement plan allow students to get “back on track” by printing an Academic Success Inventory and by mapping out an improvement plan then students are encouraged to meet with an academic advisor, according to the SASC website.
Stinebrickner, who has published papers and has conducted research on the topic of students and dropout rates, said a lack of studying is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to poorly performing students — unpreparedness is increasingly the reason, he said.
“We find that the primary source of learning is that students discover that they are not as prepared as they expected for university,” he said.
In his paper, “Learning about academic ability and the college drop-out decision,” Stinebrickner explained the cause of this lack of preparedness among students.
“At entrance, students are considerably too optimistic about grade performance, with this due mostly to over optimism about ability rather than, for example, over optimism about the amount of time that will be spent studying,” he said.
“We find that the primary source of learning is that students discover that they are not as prepared as they expected for university,” he said.
In his paper, “Learning about academic ability and the college drop-out decision,” Stinebrickner explained the cause of this lack of preparedness among students.
“At entrance, students are considerably too optimistic about grade performance, with this due mostly to over optimism about ability rather than, for example, over optimism about the amount of time that will be spent studying,” he said.
Carleton is offering a range of services to students who are concerned about their current GPAs.
The Science Student Success Centre was created at Carleton with the goal of ensuring science students adjust to the transition from high school to university.
In addition, the brand new Bounce Back program is a nine-week initiative that partners students with a GPA of less than 4.0 with a facilitator.
Students who received an average of less than 60 per cent in their first semester will be contacted and invited to opt-in to the program if they’re interested.
“Students are working one-on-one with upper-year facilitators to reflect on their performance from first semester,” said Yvonne Langen, a first generation student co-ordinator at Carleton.
When all the struggles of university life add up, they can place a burden on students who are already stressed, Langen added.
“A lot of first-year students can struggle academically because it’s a new environment in terms of new found independence, new social situations, new living environments, which can compound the stress of a more rigorous academic commitment.”
