Maritime students study longer for degree

Four-year programs have become five or six-year programs for the majority of students.

Female students enrolled in professional or applied programs are the most likely to persist and graduate. Photo: Adam Miller

Only 39% of Maritime students graduate from university after four years.

After six years, the rate increases to 57%, according to a report published by the Maritime Provinces Higher Education Commission.

"The expected time of completion is probably not four years for a four-year program. A lot has changed in the last twenty or thirty years", says Mireille Duguay, CEO of the commission.

The commission believes that students take more time to finish their degree because they often take a semester or a year off. Many students also choose to study part-time to accommodate their work schedule.

The commission followed 9,894 students who started university in 2001 in the three provinces. After one year, 23% students left university. Out of that number, 19% return to the same university within the next five years. However, the report does not take into account students that transferred to universities outside of the Maritimes, or to community colleges and trade schools.

Duguay says that "Maritime students are persisting and graduating at the same rates as those [in the U.S. and the rest of Canada]".

Three factors

During the research, the commission focused on three factors:

• discipline
• gender
• location

The commission found that the gender imbalance between students has become significant. More than 60% of students are female, while less than 40% of students are male. In the Maritimes, this means a difference of more than 2000 students.

61% of female students graduate within six years, versus 53% for male students.

"The return investment for women of their investment in post-secondary education tends to be greater for them than for men. The ability of women to find a good-paying job with only a high school diploma is not as great as it is for men" states Duguay.

Students enrolled in applied or professional programs are also the most likely to graduate, while those enrolled in Humanities, Arts and Social Science are the less likely to persist and graduate.

Moreover, students from the rest of Canada attending a Maritime university have a higher graduation rate, along with Maritime students studying outside their home province.

Conclusions

Duguay is aware that the report lacks certain information, such as students' financial and family background, as well as transfer students numbers. She hopes that this report will be "a starting point for future work".

The report does not also contain information about returning and mature students, since the commission only followed college students coming straight from high schools. "We were trying to capture the traditional students," said Duguay.

In her opinion, the commission found surprising information. If students are still enrolled in university after four years, their likeliness of graduating is very high.

The report also made it clear that study patterns are evolving. "Students are studying part-time. Students are studying in the winter, students are studying in the summer and they may not study in the fall".

The complete report can be found on the Maritime Provinces Higher Education Commission website.

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