›› South Carolina Young Adults Count State Report

Education Appendix A: College Performance

College is the most popular lifepath taken by young adults. Fifty-nine percent (19,677) of South Carolina high school graduates in 1998 entered college the following academic year. In 1998, there were over 184,000 students attending institutions of higher education in this state. Many young adults are drawn to the college experience because it provides an opportunity to prepare for careers and to mature at low risk. Students are able to build skills, knowledge, values, habits, and relationships in a secure setting.

Seeking higher education has a mixed effect on achievement of the five milestones of adulthood. Attending college postpones the end of school, and often delays full-time work and financial independence. Since most students in college do not work full-time, they are partly or wholly dependent financially on family support, loans, or other assistance. Also, attending college usually postpones the two other milestones: getting married and having children. Studies show that marriage early during young adulthood is negatively associated with the number of years of college completed. College life postpones certain milestones for some students, but accelerates them for others. The college experience typically means living away from home, usually in residence halls or off-campus with friends.

Although many young adults in college work hard to expand their intellectual and social boundaries and to further their personal growth, other college students postpone taking on the responsibilities which accompany adulthood. This is often reflected in their academic performance. Of the 10,920 first-time, full-time freshman entering the South Carolina four-year public institutions in 1992, only 27% graduated within 4 years, 48% within 5 years, and 54% within 6 years from the college of their initial enrollment.

There are several major groups of non-completers. One group is composed primarily of students admitted with poor academic skills who cannot handle college work. Another is the persons unable to afford the high cost of college. A third group is comprised primarily of middle and upper income students who attend college because it is expected of them and then either party or fritter away their time on everything but studying. Thus, there are many possible explanations for low graduation rates. First, the ability of colleges to attract qualified students has a direct impact on graduation rates. One in ten Whites and four in ten African-Americans in South Carolina score below 400 on the verbal section and slightly larger numbers below 400 on the math section of the SAT. Other factors related to college non-completion include lack of motivation, poor supervision and limited structure. The importance of these factors seems to be reflected in the comparatively high four-year graduation rates for the Citadel at 60% in comparison to the 27% state average. The strict policies for the Citadel corps of cadets minimize the opportunities for socializing and heavy drinking on weekdays, but instead encourage designated study hours and monitor the behavior of freshman more so than in other state institutions. Additional factors contributing to college non-completion relate to alcohol and drug use and the pervasive distractions of the party culture. Two national studies, the Monitoring the Future Study 1975–1995 and YRBS College Health Risk Behavior Survey - United States 1995, have found high prevalence rates of alcohol and drug use among college students, especially the 30–40% who frequently binge drink.

Affordability is also a problem. It is now much more costly to attend college than in years past, but today's student has a wider variety of financing options. In South Carolina during 1998, average tuition and fees for public, four-year colleges were $3,491 and $9,590 for private, four-year colleges. Room and board charges added approximately $3,671 in additional expenses. The frequent reliance on student loans to finance college imposes a heavy burden on young adults, many whom start the first independent years of their lives in debt. In South Carolina, the average amount owed by student borrowers receiving their degrees in 1996–97 was $9,754. Although the cost of college may be a concern to students, in the long run the investment usually proves worthwhile. In South Carolina, the earnings of young adults with a college degree are 73% higher than those of high school dropouts and 53% higher than high school graduates.

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