As part of our program evaluation plan, we assess demographic information for applicants, admitted students, and graduates. We assess this information using admissions application data and Exit Survey data (which all graduating students are asked to complete during their final term before graduation).
Applicants
Over the last four years, the proportion of applicants identifying as BIPOC has remained stable of around 30% (with a low of 27.7% in 2018 and a high of 32.1% in 2019). This is true despite a wide range of overall application numbers over the same timeframe, with a high of 453 applicants in 2021 and a low of 325 applicants in 2018. The number of international applicants we have received over this timeframe ranges from nine in 2018 (2.8% of all applicants) to 15 in 2019 (4.3% of all applicants). Based on these data, we have determined the following action steps:
Look for ways to expand admissions outreach opportunities for BIPOC applicants to create a broader applicant pool.
Look for ways to expand admissions outreach opportunities for international applicants to create a broader applicant pool.
Students
We are pleased to report that the percentage of admitted students identifying as BIPOC has increased year-over-year over the last four years, with 24.5% of students in the 2018 cohort, 26.9% in the 2019 cohort, 46% in the 2020 cohort, and 53% in the upcoming 2021 cohort. It is interesting to note that, in 2018 and 2019, the proportion of admitted students identifying as BIPOC was slightly lower than the proportion of applicants identifying as BIPOC, but in 2020 and 2021, the proportion of admitted BIPOC students was substantially higher than the proportion of BIPOC applicants. We noticed a small number of admitted international students, with only three total admitted students during this timeframe. As such, we determined the following action step:
Look for ways to expand admissions outreach to international students to create a broader applicant pool.
Review our admissions criteria to better understand any potential barriers international students are experiencing contributing to the disparity in international applicants compared to admitted international students.
Graduates
In Fall 2021, we reviewed the Exit Survey data for graduating students from the cohort admitted in 2017. Of the respondents to the demographic questions in the survey, 29.5% identified as BIPOC, 48.5% identified as LGBTQ+, and 56.5% identified as having a disability. Respondents predominately identified as female (77.5%), though 9.6% identified as transgender or gender non-binary. We should note that not all graduating students completed the Exit Survey, though the response rate was approximately 80% of all graduating students. Furthermore, not everyone who completed the survey answered all of the demographic questions. Our primary action item based on this data is to improve the response rate to 100%. To do this, we are planning to have all exit surveys completed during internship class sessions. Currently, the practice of collecting Exit Survey data varies by program, so systematizing this process by collecting during internship will be a way of capturing all graduating students.