Student Achievement

Florida State College at Jacksonville identifies, evaluates, and publishes goals and outcomes for student achievement, that are appropriate to the College’s mission, to the nature of the students it serves, and to the kinds of programs offered by the College. FSCJ uses multiple measures to document student success.

Adopted by the College’s Executive Leadership Team, the College has identified four measures to document student success: 1) IPEDS graduation rate, 2) fall-to-fall persistence rate (formerly retention rate), 3) institutionally calculated graduation rates, and 4) completion of gateway English and/or gateway mathematics course within first year.

Mission, Strategic Priorities, and FCS Performance Funding Model

The student achievement outcomes identified by FSCJ are appropriate to the College's mission statement, which is “Florida State College at Jacksonville provides an equitable, high quality, success-driven learning experience for our diverse community of students.” as well as the vision statement for the College, which is “To promote intellectual growth for life-long learning, advance the economic mobility of our students and transform the communities we serve.” An extension of the College’s mission is the 2025 - 2028 strategic plan, Transforming Tomorrow. Three of the five strategic priorities identified within the plan focused on students:

1. Enrollment: Expand access to and support persistence in postsecondary education serving all student populations
2. Service: Enhance and deliver an exceptional student and employee experience to create a sense of belongingness
3. Success: Increase student achievement and success to strengthen opportunities for economic mobility for all students

IPEDS Graduation Rate

The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) provides basic data needed to describe and analyze trends in postsecondary education. IPEDS collects data on the number of students who complete a postsecondary education program. As evidenced through the five years of data provided in the table below, the College’s minimum IPEDS graduation rate was 35% (2018) and the maximum was 40% (2021). Using linear projection modeling, the achievement goal for the overall IPEDS graduation rate for FSCJ is 41%. The threshold of acceptability for this measure is 30%, which is the minimum graduation rate that was reported in the 2011 IPEDS feedback report, the lowest graduation rate by the College over the previous ten-year timeframe.

Five-Years of FSCJ IPEDS Graduation Rates

Data retrieved from annual IPEDS GRS survey.

Institutionally Calculated Graduation Rates

The College has identified its institutionally calculated graduation rates as students earning a certificate or degree within the four years (200% of time to completion) of initial enrollment. To calculate this metric, a cohort of students must be defined. For purposes of this student achievement measure, the College has defined the cohort as degree or certificate seeking students new to FSCJ (first-time, in college, first-time in college after dual enrollment, and first-time transfer to FSCJ). Referencing the five years of institutionally calculated graduation rates provided, the minimum rate was 33% (fall 2018 cohort) and the maximum was 38% (fall 2020 cohort). Using linear projection modeling, a 40% achievement goal for institutionally calculated graduation rates would represent substantial progress. The threshold of acceptability for this measure is 31%, which is the lowest graduation rate by the College over the previous ten-year timeframe.

Five-Years of Institutionally Calculated Graduation Rates for 200% Time to Completion

These data were retrieved on 4/16/2026 from FSCJ’s Early Momentum Metrics for IR Cohort dashboard.

Fall-to-Fall Persistence Rate

The College has identified its fall-to-fall persistence rate as an additional measure of student success. To calculate persistence, a cohort of students must be defined. For purposes of this student achievement measure, the College has defined the cohort as degree or certificate seeking students new to FSCJ (first-time, in college, first-time in college after dual enrollment, and first-time transfer to FSCJ). Removed from the cohort are completers within the first term up to the persistence term.

Referencing the five years of retention data provided, the minimum rate was 56% (fall 2021 to fall 2022) and the maximum was 58% (the last three available fall cohorts). Using linear projection modeling, a 60% achievement goal for fall-to-fall persistence would represent substantial progress. The threshold of acceptability for this measure is 52%, which is the lowest fall-to-fall persistence by the College over the previous ten-year timeframe.

Five-Years of Fall-to-Fall Persistence Rates

Completion of Gateway English and Gateway Mathematics Course within First Year

The College has identified student completion of gateway English and/or gateway mathematics courses within the first year as a student achievement metric. To calculate this metric, a cohort of students must be defined. For purposes of this student achievement measure, the College has defined the cohort as degree or certificate seeking students new to FSCJ (first-time in college, first-time in college after dual enrollment, and first-time transfer to FSCJ). Referencing the five years of data provided, the minimum rate for completion of gateway English and a gateway mathematics course was 43% and 32%, respectively. The maximum rate for completion of gateway English and a gateway mathematics course was 47% and 36%, respectively. Using linear projection modeling, a 38% achievement goal for completion of a gateway mathematics course within the first year, and a 48% achievement goal for completion of gateway English within the first year would represent substantial progress. The threshold of acceptability for this measure has been identified as 30% completion of a gateway mathematics course and a 41% completion of gateway English within the first year, which is the lowest rate for each over the previous ten-year timeframe.

Five-Years of Completion of gateway English and/or Gateway Mathematics Courses within First Year

These data were retrieved on 4/16/2026 from FSCJ’s Early Momentum Metrics for IR Cohort dashboard.

Contact Information

Email  StateReporting@fscj.edu