Narrative: Compliance. Non-compliance

Transcription

1 8. The institution evaluates success with respect to student achievement including, as appropriate, consideration of course completion, State licensing examination, and job placement rates. (Federal Requirement 4.1) Compliance Non-compliance Narrative: Part of the mission of Virginia Commonwealth University states: The university is dedicated to educating full-time and part-time students of all ages and backgrounds... so they may realize their full potential as informed, productive citizens with a lifelong commitment to learning and service. As part of its efforts to evaluate the success of achieving this mission, VCU tracks a variety of measures, including first-year retention rates; number and types of degrees awarded; first-time, full-time graduation rates after six years of enrollment; and alumni surveys that include job placement. Several of these measures are reported to the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) in various reports, such as the Institutional Performance Standards (IPS). Capitalizing on the capabilities of WEAVEonline, every academic unit within the University now has the ability to track student achievement in a variety of ways including, but not limited to, licensure rates, job placement rates, graduate school placement rates, and graduating seniors/alumni satisfaction surveys. University-wide information in this regard includes graduate surveys conducted each year by the VCU Career Center in conjunction with Student Affairs. A survey is mailed to all the students graduating in the spring semester. The response rates average about 20 percent. Much information is gathered including job placements and admission into graduate schools. The table below reports the statistics for both for 2007, 2008, and Year Percent Employed Percent Accepted into Graduate Studies % (n=330) 18% (n=169) % (n= 451) 19% (n=121) % (n=361) 18% (n=118) As the table above demonstrates, of those who answered the survey about 1/3 were employed in 2007, increasing to more than one half being employed in 2008 and Of those who answered the survey, percent were accepted into graduate school. In addition to University-wide assessments, individual units also collect similar data on their graduates. Some specific examples follow. Virginia Commonwealth University P a g e 1

2 School of Pharmacy The School of Pharmacy collects data about employment using an Employment Placement Survey. It is conducted approximately one month prior to graduation. With greater than 90 percent of the students having made definite career decisions prior to graduation, the undecided students usually make an employment or residency decision within four to six weeks after graduation. The distribution of this group, among the options listed below, remains unchanged over the three year period (see Table below). The largest percentage each year go into community practice, followed by post-graduate residency programs, health system practice and government. Year of Graduation # in Graduating Class Community Practice Postgraduate Residency Program Health System Practice Government Undecided about offers prior to Graduation VCU Brandcenter (Part of the School of Mass Communications within the College of Humanities and Sciences) The Brandcenter offers a M.S. degree in Mass Communications with a concentration in Advertising. Specific, applied, professional degree programs like this one result in very high job placement rates because students enter into the workforce as soon as they graduate. Using social media outlets (e.g., Facebook), the Brandcenter keeps track of the employment rates by year of graduation (see Table below). Except for 2009 which is only a partial year of data collected, Brandcenter graduates enjoy very high levels of employment in their chosen field. Year 2009* 70% % % % Percentage Employed in the Advertising Field *Collected Generally 90% of the graduates have jobs within six months of graduation. School of Allied Health Professions Allied Health Professions have a number of programs that require certification/licensure. The table below depicts very high certification/licensure rates as would be expected in such professional programs. Also reported are the employment results indicating that within six months of graduation a large percentage, if not 100 percent, of the graduates are employed. Virginia Commonwealth University P a g e 2

3 Unit Degree Certification/Licensure Results Employment Results Clinical Laboratory Sciences Radiation Sciences Nurse Anesthesia Occupational Therapy BS ASCP pass rate 89% 100% w/in 6 months MS 100% pass rate 100% w/in 6 months BS >75% for all three tracks over a five year period (accreditation baseline expectation is 75%) MSNA 100% on first attempt 100% DNAP MSOT N/A post-professional degree 82% 1st attempt; 100% 2nd attempt 94% w/in 6 months (accreditation baseline expectation is 75%) N/A post-professional degree 100% for graduates who passed the certification exam. Physical Therapy DPT 100% 100% w/in 6 months Health Administration School of Nursing MHA Not applicable 96% w/in 6 months Ph.D. Not applicable 83% w/in 6 months The School of Nursing administers a student employment survey (for graduate students) and a career plan survey (for undergraduate students) at time of graduation from the Nursing program. It is administered again at one and three year intervals post graduation. Graduate Students Percentage Employed Undergraduate Students (traditional program) Undergraduate Students (RN-BS program) % 91% 88% 90% 83% 75% 97% 94% 93% As would be expected in a professional program like Nursing, large percentages of the students are employed in the nursing field, regardless of what program of study they take. State Licensing Examination Undergraduate 1 1 Under the guidance of its membership, NCSBN (National Council of State Boards of Nursing) has developed two licensure examinations used by its Member Boards to test the entry-level nursing competence of candidates for licensure as registered nurses and as licensed practical/vocational nurses. These examinations, the NCLEX-RN and NCLEX-PN examinations, are administered with the contractual assistance of a national test service. The NCLEX Examinations Department is also responsible for practice analyses necessary to support the NCLEX-RN and NCLEX-PN examination development process Virginia Commonwealth University P a g e 3

4 Similarly, undergraduate state licensing examination scores and graduate certification passing rates reveal very high passing rates. Year Test Pass Rate 2006 NCLEX 83.3% 2007 NCLEX 97.52% 2008 NCLEX 93% Graduate - certification pass rates Exam Dates Organization Program % Passed 2006 ANCC ACNP ANCC ANP ANCC FNP NCC WHNP PCNB PNP ANCC ACNP ANCC ANP ANCC FNP ANCC NP Adult Psych NCC WHNP PCNB PNP ANCC ACNP ANCC ANP ANCC FNP PCNB PNP 100 Legend: ANCC = American Nurses Credentialing Center ACNP = Acute Care Nurse Practitioner ANP - Adult Nurse Practitioner FNP = Family Nurse Practitioner WHNP = Women's Health Nurse Practitioner PCNP - Pediatric Nursing Certification Board PNP = Pediatric Nurse Practitioner NCC = National Certification Corporation Forensic Science Forensic Science within the College of Humanities and Sciences surveys its graduates annually to determine who is employed in the field and who is attending graduate school. Response rates vary by Virginia Commonwealth University P a g e 4

5 year with some surmising that graduates only report when they have secured employment. As the table indicates, the percentage of students employed ranges from a high of 67% to a low of 10 percent. The percentage of students going on to graduate school ranges from a high of more than 25 percent to a low of 2 percent. The Department is working on ways to sort this out in order to get a better picture of what happens to graduates after program completion. Forensic Science Graduates by Employment and Graduate School Year Graduates % Employed % Graduate School %Unknown These data and the overall student survey conducted annually by VCU Career Center demonstrates that VCU s graduates are successful in completing their degree programs, passing their state licensing exams, and finding employment. Therefore we conclude that Federal Requirement 4.1 is met. Virginia Commonwealth University P a g e 5