Indiana State University has created a program (the Sycamore Graduate Guarantee) to help students graduate within four years. This program is a great step for a college to show its dedication to students.
The program addresses a common obstacle students face which prolongs their time in college. Colleges often offer a course/program that is more convenient for the instructors than the students. This is done by offering courses every other year while requiring students to take certain courses in a specific sequence. This obstruction forces students to tack on an extra year or two before graduation.
Indiana State University is offering participants in their Sycamore Graduate Guarantee program a substitution of classes and other accommodations for those stuck in such a trap. Hopefully, such assistance will become a trend which would help a great number of students who have been affected by this common problem.
For students who are eligible for and enter the program, the school will make the additional semesters free if the student’s delayed graduation date was no fault of their own.
For a college to break the trend and pledge to help students instead of impeding a student’s academic success is truly magnanimous.
However, there is one major loophole in the contract. The student is required to declare a major by sophomore year instead of junior year. Many other caveats exist, but it’s more common to declare a major in junior year; this is due to the fact that students often aren’t ready to declare a major by that point. Students who have not yet identified their strengths or developed maturity (see The 5 Main Reasons Students Don’t Finish College) are ill-prepared to declare (and stick with) a major course of study.
The other half of the loophole—if the student changes majors, it must be done before the scheduling limitations would prevent the student from graduating from the new major within 4 years of the original beginning date. Since the student is required to declare a major about a year before the normal time frame, they are less likely to be ready to make such a life-changing decision. Changing majors after that date could render the student ineligible to be part of Indiana State University’s Sycamore Graduate Guarantee program.
Career Prep Academy’s goal is to help a student develop in order to avoid these common pitfalls. A student who is well-prepared for such problems is less vulnerable regardless of their chosen college’s programs or guarantees. Protect your child’s future. Call Career Prep Academy at 317-641-4677 for a free consultation today.