Postsecondary Institutions Rely on ACT Data to Find and Keep the Right Students

For postsecondary institutions across the country, the magic number is 300. That’s about how many data elements they receive on each student who takes the ACT—broad information they rely on to recruit and retain students.

These data elements present a whole picture of a student—both academic and nonacademic factors. Students provide information on these items during the registration process:

• college enrollment preferences
• factors influencing college choice
• educational plans, interests, and needs
• family income, financial aid, and work plans
• extracurricular activities and plans
• out-of-class accomplishments

Most institutions receive the information electronically, making it easy for them to share it with various departments on campus, said Michael Hovland, ACT senior consultant. “Colleges collect a lot of information about a student during the application process, but often much of that information never leaves the admissions office. With the ACT electronic records, others can access important information that helps them reach out to individual students and get them engaged on campus.”

Institutions use the data for various purposes, including course placement, student engagement, career counseling, academic advising, retention, institutional research, recruitment, and enrollment management. Here’s how four institutions have directly connected the data elements to their recruitment, engagement, and retention strategies.

Tiffin University
Tiffin, Ohio

The right fit between a student and a college is essential for retention at any institution. It’s even more important when the institution is located in a small, rural community like Tiffin, Ohio.

Cam Cruikshank

“While academic qualifications are important, fit is even more important to us because of our location and size,” said Cam Cruickshank, vice president of enrollment management at Tiffin University. “Students have to fit in here academically, financially, and socially in order to thrive.”

The ACT data help staff determine if a prospective student’s interests, goals, and needs correspond with the opportunities Tiffin University offers. “If a student’s vocational aspirations don’t tie in with the majors we have or if the student is interested in activities we don’t offer, then that student is probably not going to stay here,” said Cruickshank.

Once fit is established, the next step is getting students engaged on campus with activities that complement their interests. “We attempt to build connections for them with the college community before and after they’ve enrolled. Doing this has proven to be an effective retention tool for us,” he said.

Missouri University of Science and Technology
Rolla, Missouri

Data from the ACT drive many student-focused initiatives at the Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T).

Jay Goff

“We rarely make a decision that affects students without first viewing ACT’s student profile and interest data,” said Jay Goff, vice provost and dean for enrollment management at Missouri S&T. “We want to make sure students have a quality experience. Without the ACT data, that would be hard for us to do on a continual basis.”

Missouri S&T used the data to restructure its new students activities in an effort to retain more students. Based on responses to the “college educational needs and interests” category of questions, the university added Residential College Learning Communities. Students with similar interests share living environments that connect their classroom experiences to intellectual, artistic, social, and cultural activities. The university is also expanding its Student Recreation Center in response to indications that a large percentage of incoming students want to be involved in recreational athletics.

ACT data have helped increase diversity at Missouri S&T. Between 2000 and 2008, the university saw a 74 percent increase in minority students and a 35 percent increase in female students.

“Because 90 percent of our students pursue majors in STEM—science, technology, engineering, and mathematics—it’s hard for us to attract minority and female students. The data from the ACT helped us better target underrepresented students and let them know about the opportunities we offer in the STEM fields,” said Goff.

Florida State University
Tallahassee, Florida

Students who do well on the ACT English and mathematics subtests are nicely rewarded at Florida State University (FSU).

Those with certain scores can skip two mandatory freshman courses—composition and college algebra—and receive credit for them. Students who receive a 29 or higher on the English portion and a 30 or higher on the math portion of the ACT are granted three semester hours of credit each. Based on their college entrance exam scores alone, 26 percent of incoming freshmen receive the credit for English, and 12 percent do for math.

Students with math scores ranging from 26 to 29 do not receive credit for college algebra, but can still bypass it. This allows them to progress to a higher level math course without having the prerequisite college algebra course. They may also take any other course—mainly in the sciences and statistics—for which college algebra is a prerequisite.

Greg Beaumont

“It’s as simple as it sounds. Students with this level of performance are notified in the summer that they have been awarded credit,” said Greg Beaumont, associate dean and director, office of undergraduate studies at FSU. “They can then be placed in courses that are better suited to their academic abilities.”

FSU is one of many institutions that grants special privileges based on students’ demonstrated proficiency in subjects on the ACT. FSU started awarding credit in the 1994–1995 academic year as a way of recognizing students who have done well and reducing freshmen enrollment for those courses.

“We couldn’t hire enough faculty to keep up with the number of students, so we tried this approach to decrease class sizes for those courses,” said Beaumont.

In addition, the Florida Department of Education uses ACT subtest scores to exempt students from its College-Level Academic Skills Test (CLAST). FSU waives the CLAST reading category for students who earn a 22 or higher on the ACT reading subtest. Most of the students who enroll at FSU have been exempt from CLAST.

“Because Florida has a high first-generation student population, we do everything we can to help students get off to a good start,” Beaumont said.

The Ohio State University
Columbus, Ohio

The Ohio State University uses data from the ACT to reach out to incoming students with resources that are individually tailored.

Jefferson Blackburn-Smith

“We use a lot of the ACT data elements to better understand students—their strengths, interests, and goals—so we can connect them with opportunities that enhance their specific situation,” said Jefferson Blackburn-Smith, senior associate director, undergraduate admissions and first year experience, at Ohio State.

Staff members pay particular attention to the “college educational needs and interests” field so they can help students obtain relevant services. They send e-mails to freshmen who have indicated they might need help in certain subjects to tell them about services, such as math and writing labs or workshops on study skills and career exploration.

“We’ve seen a considerable increase in the use of support services, in spite of the fact that the academic profile of our students is high,” said Blackburn-Smith. “Sometimes it’s the brightest students who think they’ll need support and, if we let them know about the resources, they will take advantage of them.”

The university also uses the data to connect new students to campus before classes begin. Various student groups contact those who have indicated interest in a particular activity to introduce them to related opportunities.

“Our student orchestra group has had great success in recruiting new members this way,” said Blackburn-Smith.

These four institutions—and others like them—appreciate the value the ACT data bring to their campuses.

“The ACT data help institutions ensure they attract and retain the students who will benefit the most from their programs,” said Hovland.

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