OU is one of several schools that has yet to submit a report, due last year, dealing with the amount of programs offering three-year graduation paths.
Attending college is expensive. That’s not a secret to anyone.
We are sympathetic toward every student when it comes to financing their education, which is why we were upset when one of our reporters learned that the university failed to submit a report last year showing that 60 percent of its baccalaureate degree programs provide a three-year pathway to graduation.
Not only do we believe the university should comply with what is asked of it by the Ohio Revised Code, we think there should be more options for students to graduate in three years. Some students do not have the means to attend college for longer than that amount of time, and others may simply not want to be in school for the more traditional four years.
When students plan to graduate early, they have to organize their class schedules in a way that allows them to do so. That can often get complicated, as some courses are only offered during specific terms and others require students to be in a certain year.
Because of difficulties like these, the university should be doing its part to help those students graduate when they want to.
A Post analysis comparing the number of programs with a three-year degree option and the total number of degree programs offered at OU showed that only about 51 percent of the university’s programs have the early graduation option.
According to the university, it is difficult to actually determine the true number of programs with three-year graduation paths, as some programs have multiple concentrations or tracks and might be counted as one program or as several different programs.
It is worth noting that OU is only one of several schools, which include Kent State University and University of Cincinnati, that has not submitted the report to the state.
We urge administrations at all schools to help students graduate at the rate that they feel is appropriate for them.
Editorials represent the majority opinion of The Post's executive editors: Editor-in-Chief Emma Ockerman, Managing Editor Rebekah Barnes, Opinion Editor Will Gibbs and Digital Managing Editor Samuel Howard. Post editorials are independent of the publication's news coverage.
