Getting out in four years not just a dream

Monday, June 15, 1998

Getting out in four years not just a dream

GRADUATION: Whether it’s 12

or 18 quarters, students agree college is learning
experience

By Neal Narahara

Daily Bruin Contributor

Many UCLA students have learned to hedge their bets when asked
how long it will take them to graduate.

Graduation in four years is no longer a given. In fact, taking
five years to graduate has become a national standard, making the
term "four-year college" a misnomer.

According to the American College Testing program, only 52.8
percent of students who entered four-year colleges as freshmen in
1991 had graduated with a bachelor’s degree by the summer of 1996.
This marked an all-time low since the program began collecting data
in 1983, and is the most recent mark in a sustained declining
trend.

UCLA is an exception to the national trend. Contrary to popular
belief, it is more common for students to graduate in four years at
UCLA than any other length of time.

"I’m eager to pursue my law career," said Scott Cwiertny, a
fourth-year student graduating with a degree in music. "I figured I
could finish music in four years and move on."

Robert Cox, manager of enrollment planning at the office of
academic planning and budget, said that national trends have little
bearing on those at UCLA. From 1993-1997, over 90 percent of
entering freshman students have graduated with a bachelor’s degree
before completing 15 quarters – the equivalent of five years.

The average time it takes to graduate has held steady at close
to 13 quarters in the recent years but has declined since the late
’80s.

Cox attributes shorter college careers to increased fees, which
make an extra year more costly. In addition, he sigths rising
admission standards. To be competitive, many freshmen are coming in
with more advanced placement and community college units.

"I’m expecting we’ll approach 13 quarters (to graduate) within a
few years, as student performance keeps getting better," Cox
said.

Although more students graduate in 12 quarters than any other
length of time, over half of UCLA students enter their fifth year,
taking 13 or more quarters to graduate.

Of those students who do start a fifth year of college, most
choose to graduate at the end of the year. Few graduate in the fall
or winter, and even fewer enter a sixth year.

"College is too fun to leave on time, and six years is too
embarrassing," said Bill Brown, a fourth-year political science
student, who plans to graduate next fall.

Cox has his own theory as to why so many people choose to
graduate at the end of their fifth year.

"Graduating in spring is better timing than doing it in winter
or fall," Cox said. "It’s the job-getting season. There are spring
interviews for jobs that start in the fall or summer."

For some, five years are necessary. Briseyda Zarate planned on
five years to work her way through school and earn her degrees in
history and Chicano/a studies.

In addition to her full academic and work schedule, she took
time to participate in campus organizations such as Movimiento
Estudiantil Chicano/a de Aztlan (MEChA).

"It’s been stressful, but now that I’m graduating, I’m glad I
did it," Zarate said.

There is also, of course, the ever-present reluctance to leave.
After more than four years as a Bruin, life after UCLA is anything
but certain.

"In a sense, I’m ready to move on, but I’m loving college," said
Lorin Vogel, a fourth-year English student who plans to graduate
next winter.

"If I could, I’d probably stay in as long as I could," he
said.