“Underrepresented students face unique challenges when pursuing graduate education, with some not even considering the possibility of pursuing a graduate degree,” wrote Jeffrey Ragsdale, Maria Medrano, Rebecca Weston, and Ambika Mathur in the July issue of SEMQ.
Their article describes a program at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA), a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI), developed to address barriers to Hispanic student recruitment, retention, and completion. Through UTSA’s “Keep Running With Us” initiative, underrepresented minority (URM) students from undergraduate programs who were not considering graduate education and who met graduate program requirements were identified by faculty and staff. These students were auto-admitted into matching master’s programs using a streamlined application process that did not require traditional admissions criteria such as standardized test scores and recommendation letters.
The program resulted in an increased percent of Hispanic students enrolled and increased graduation rates among all Hispanic students at the institution.
“These outcomes demonstrate the effectiveness of KRWU’s approach at increasing enrollment and awarded degrees for Hispanic students,” the authors stated.
Other articles in this issue include:
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