A Path to Success: Microgrants and Degree Completion 

In 2010, Georgia State University (GSU) administrators discovered that more than 1,000 students were being dropped each semester due to unpaid tuition and fee balances. To address this, GSU piloted and subsequently implemented a no-application microgrant program for students who were in good academic standing and had a modest unpaid balance. Eligibility requirements and logistics evolved over the years, but overall, the selection process can be thought of as operating as follows: 

Figure 1. 

Once the final group of recipients is determined, students receive an automatic payment to their university account so that they can remain enrolled.  

Data from the records of 1,065 Georgia State University senior students highlights the substantial positive impact of the Panther Retention Grant (PRG) program. All of the students tracked had over 90 credit hours accumulated and were in good academic standing during the Fall 2013 to Fall 2015 academic terms, with 739 receiving the emergency micro-grant and 326 dropped due to having an unpaid balance. Graduation rates for both groups are shown in Figure 2.  

Figure 2.  

Eighty-seven percent of the PRG recipients graduated within six years of the emergency award, whereas only 32% of the dropped students eventually completed their degrees within the same period. Both groups of students were tracked for six years. For every year, the graduation rate of PRG recipients was markedly higher than the dropped students. In fact, the PRG recipients are an astonishing 13 times more likely to graduate than dropped students.  

Some students who are dropped for non-payment are reinstated in their courses if they can resolve their balance. A comparison of PRG recipients and the subset of dropped students who were reinstated further illustrates the value of the PRG program (Table 1). Within six years of the award, PRG recipients graduate at a rate that is 20 percentage points higher than students who were dropped and reinstated. Moreover, the 87% graduation rate within six years for PRG recipients is even higher than that of senior students who were not dropped (80%). These data indicate a strong association between emergency micro-grants and higher graduation rates.  

Table 1. 

These data also illustrate the detrimental impact that financial issues can have on student progression. Conversely, the PRG program has contributed to a trend of Georgia State students graduating more quickly and with less debt. Average debt loan at graduation for Georgia State’s bachelor’s students has declined each of the last seven years, dropping from an average of $21,430 to $16,929. In a study conducted by Ithaka S+R, researchers also found that PRG recipients are accumulating $3,700 less debt than similar students who do not receive the grant (Rossman et. al, 2022). The use of data has allowed Georgia State to proactively support students and address their financial gaps and continue to graduation.  

Earning a bachelor’s degree has several personal and societal benefits. At the individual level, obtaining an undergraduate degree results in not only the potential for increased career prospects and wages, but it also provides degree-earners with valuable knowledge, critical thinking skills, and the opportunity to build generational wealth (Baum et al., 2010; Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2018; Lopez, 2018). The benefits to society are perhaps even more compelling. Those who earn bachelor’s degree engage in more civic duties, have a lower reliance on public assistance programs, and ultimately provide services necessary for the public good (i.e., doctors, teachers, urban planners, and scientists) (Baum et al., 2010; Page & Scott-Clayton, 2016; Lopez, 2018; Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2018; United States Commission on Civil Rights, 2015).  

Finding ways to (proactively) attend to students’ financial needs is critical to student degree completion. As policymakers and HEIs consider the disparities typical for degree completion, a microgrant program such as this can serve as a catalyst for much-needed change.  

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