tl20080508-01 "May 8, 2008 www.thetowerlight.com The Towerlight Published by and for the students of Towson and Baltimore -- twice-weekly Thursday Now on TheTowerlight.com: Check out coverage of the second SGA elections and view video Word on the Street... ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? 57.3% 1992 58.9% 1998 57.6% 1999 63.5% 2000 66.1% 2001 60.1% 1995 54.1% 1994 56% 1993 55.4% 1996 55.3% 1997 The changing culture of graduation Nick DiMarco Senior Editor Nationwide, students have been taking longer and longer to don a cap and gown and receive a diploma. Super seniors are commonplace, regularly requiring five or six years or more to complete the courses needed to graduate. �Graduating in six years is more of the norm than the exception,� Lonnie McNew, senior asso-ciate vice president for enrollment management in academic affairs, said. According to institutional research that can be found on Towson�s Web site, in 2003 only 45.7 percent of 1,753 first-time, full-time, degree-seeking undergraduates graduated in four years. In 2002, 39.6 percent of students graduated in four years. Of the remain-ing students, only 61.9 percent gradu-ated in five years. To graduate in four years, stu-dents are required to take a minimum of 15 credits per semester. �It really surprises me as to how many stu-dents only take 12 credits a semester,� Cecilia Deems, who has worked as the director of undergraduate graduation for two years, said. On a daily basis she receives phone calls from students and parents regarding graduation�not always for positive reasons. �I think we delay adulthood, make adolescence last longer, so there�s no incentive maybe for students to graduate early... It appears that the students are pampered somewhat. There�s not that tension from the parents.� Deems said she has encountered a number of reasons why students run into trouble around graduation. She mentioned that a number of students do not keep track of their progress and credits. �I�m not making this up, this is reality,� Deems said. �The student who is proactive, who takes the time to look at his or her record to make sure of the correct major and the correct concentration will have a less stressful gradua-tion.� According to the institutional research sta-tistics for graduation rates, first-time, full-time, degree-seeking transfer students are Super seniors across the country opt against four-year plan, stay in college longer See SENIORS, page 12 Photos Patrick Smith, Illustration Rachel Fauber/The Towerlight Below, Towson University students have followed the national trend of staying in school beyond the traditional four years. Super seniors are common as the number students graduating from Towson in six years has increased over the last decade. In 2001, 66 percent of students graduated after six years. "
