Promoting Student Matriculation toGraduate School December 3, 2010CGS Annual ConferenceLarry Griffith

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The Gates Millennium Scholars (GMS) program, established in 1999, is a 1.6 billion dollar initiative funded by grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

The goal of GMS is to promote academic excellence and to provide an opportunity for 20,000 outstanding students with significant financial need to reach their full potential.

Gates Millennium Scholars ProgramOur Purpose

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About the Program

•UNCF- the United Negro College Fund is the administrator of the GMS initiative and has partnered with the following organizations:

• Asian & Pacific Islander American Scholarship Fund

• American Indian Graduate Center Scholars

• Hispanic Scholarship Fund

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• African American, American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian Pacific American or Hispanic Americans;

• Citizens/permanent residents of the United States;• Cumulative GPA of 3.3 on a 4.0 scale;• Matriculation for the first time at an accredited college or university as 

full‐time, degree‐seeking freshmen in the fall of 2011, with exception of students jointly enrolled in high school and college ; GED recipients are also eligible

• Significant demonstrated financial need as defined by Federal Pell Grant eligibility criteria; and

• Demonstrated leadership commitment through participation in community service, extracurricular or other activities that reflect leadership abilities.

GMS Program OverviewEligibility Criteria

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• Since 2000, GMS has awarded over $630 million in scholarships to African American, American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian Pacific American or Hispanic Americans; of which $107.7 million has funded Gates Scholars in graduate school

• The average award from 2001‐2010 is $11,593 and for graduate Gates Scholars $21,979

• GMS has funded over 14,000 Scholars at over 1,500 colleges and universities of which 2,470 are graduate Gates Scholars at 530 different colleges and universities

• Gates Scholars represent 50 states and all American territories and commonwealths combined undergraduate and graduate scholarships

GMS Program OverviewScholarship Awards

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• Provides graduate degree funding for continuing Scholars in: mathematics, computer science, science, engineering, education or library science, and public health 

• For AY 10‐11 GMS funds graduate Gates Scholars up to $34,693 at private institutions and $24,109 at public institutions based on the unmet need determined by the financial aid award letter provided by the institution

• Renews and increases annually based on satisfactory academic progress, full‐time* enrollment and timely submission of required documents

* At the Doctoral level the enrollment requirement is based on the Gates Scholars’ status as defined by the institution 

GMS Program OverviewGraduate Funding

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GMS Graduate Funding Eligibility Criteria

•The Graduate Program Inquiry Form (GPIF) is a document used by Gates Scholars to inquire about the funding eligibility of a graduate program

•Gates Scholars are required to submit the GPIF along with the program’s description, their planned concentration and the program’s curriculum information, prior to the desired matriculation date

•Once the program has been reviewed by GMS a decision is sent to the Gates Scholar via his/her email address

•Based on GMS’ guidelines, if the program is ineligible for funding, Gates Scholars are encouraged to speak with a representative from GMS  to identify programs that both may be eligible for funding and encompass the Scholar’s educational interest

•Gates Scholars will not receive graduate funding until a GPIF has been submitted, reviewed and approved by GMS

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Deferment Options

•GMS recognizes that Gates Scholars may need time during their academic experience to defer funding. There are three types of deferment:

•Discretionary (Academic, Personal Hardship, Transitional)•Circumstantial(Medical, Service)•Graduate (Teaching/Public Health, Master’s, M.D., Doctoral)

•Gates Scholars have one year of Discretionary Deferment and may use it      in any number of ways which include, but are not limited to:

•Preparing for, and taking, standardized tests•Gaining employment experience•Researching potential programs for graduate school

•Gates Scholars are offered deferment in an effort to increase graduation rates and decrease attrition rates

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GMS’ Endeavors to Increase Awareness of Graduate Programs & Fee Reduction/ Waivers

•Graduate School Institutes (GSI)•Tulane (Public Health)

•We connect with institutions and host events on their campuses to increase Gates Scholars’ graduate funding/program awareness

•Center for Disease Control Conference •Pre‐existing conference to encourage students to pursue careers in public health through exploration of public health and to network with professionals in the field 

•Southern Regional Education Board Institute on Teaching and Mentoring•Largest meeting of doctoral candidates of color in the United States

•American Library Association Conference•Professionals in the field encourage Scholars to pursue careers in library science through exploration of the field

•Fee Waivers•Graduate Record Examination (GRE) Fee Reduction Certificates•Schools of Public Health Application Service ( SOPHAS) Fee Waivers

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GMS’ Endeavors to Increase Awareness of Graduate Programs & Fee Reduction/ Waivers

•Leadership Conferences•Alumni Sessions

•Added to demystify the graduate school application process and to provide GMS  Scholars with important information on how to navigate graduate school

•Information Mall•Information made available to students regarding the 7 funded areas of study

•Graduate Education Videos on the 7 funded areas •In continuous play at the GMS Knowledge Center and on‐line

•Leadership Academies•One‐day, mini‐conferences that allow Scholars and Alumni to self‐select workshops that focus on preparing for, and attending, graduate school

•Social Networking•GMS Scholar Connection

•Updated messaging, use of chat and blog features to increase awareness of the 7 funded areas of study

71

141

74

139103

208

129

297

150

365

159

388

181

409

168

407

182

402

186

460

201

496

0

100

200

300

400

500

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

Graduate School matriculation in GMS supported and sponsored programs

Male

Female

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Top 10 Graduate Institutions  2010‐2011 (Fall)

Rank Inst_Name Grand Total %AA %AI %AP %HA1University of Southern California 20 20% 0% 10% 70%2University of California-Los Angeles 17 24% 0% 41% 35%3University of Michigan-Ann Arbor 17 41% 0% 24% 35%4Teachers College, Columbia University 16 25% 0% 50% 25%5Johns Hopkins University 14 50% 7% 21% 21%6New York University 14 50% 0% 0% 50%7Emory University 12 50% 8% 33% 8%8George Washington University 11 36% 9% 27% 27%9University of Arizona 11 0% 73% 0% 27%

10Capella University 10 90% 10% 0% 0%10Columbia University in the City of New York 10 50% 0% 30% 20%10Walden University 10 100% 0% 0% 0%

Legend, AA= African American, AI= American Indian, AP= Asian Pacific Islander, HA= Hispanic American

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PUBLIC PRIVATE DISTRIBUTION OF GATES GRADUATE SCHOLARS, GMS YEAR 1-11

60 69121

167232

278 316 293 270 285338

145

190

259

283269

274 282 314361

359

152

1 2 3 4 5 6

Private College

Public University

28% 32%39% 39%

45%51% 54% 51% 46% 44% 48%

72% 68%61% 61%

55%49% 46% 49% 54% 56% 52%

Private College

Public University

100%  = % of Scholars attending out of

state Public universities

18%15%

18%21%

23%

26%26%28%

33%34%36%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

212 214 311 426 515 547

# of Scholars attending out of

state Public universities

2822

35

5464

70 7080

104

123129

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

7

590 575

8

584

9

646

10

697

11GMS Year

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2010-2011 DISTRIBUTION OF ACTIVE SCHOLARS IN THE GMS PROGRAM BY ETHNICITY AND ACADEMIC CLASSIFICATION

360 354 356439

190117 6

149 129

211

4312

0

150 151 149

182

70

36

0

352 353 344

442

146

69

150

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Freshman Sophomore Junior Senior Master’s Doctoral

African American

American Indian

Asian Pacific American

Hispanic American

35% 35% 36% 33%40%

50%43%

15% 13% 13% 16%12%

5%

0%

15% 16% 15% 14% 14%15%

0%

35% 36% 36% 36% 34% 29%

57%

Freshman SophomoreJunior Senior Master’s Doctoral

African American

American Indian

Asian Pacific American

Hispanic American

100%  = 1012 1007 978 1274 449 234

36%

14%

15%

35%

Overall

African American

American Indian

Asian Pacific American

Hispanic American

100%  =                                       4968

Teach_Cert.

Teach_Cert

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Acad Level Percentage of ScholarsFreshman 20.4%Sophomore 20.3%Junior 19.7%Senior 25.6%Masters 9.0%Doctoral 4.7%Teacher Certification 0.3%

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2010-2011 GRADUATE FIELD OF STUDY

34

347

76134

7719 11

Computer S

cience

Educatio

nEngin

eering

Library Scie

nce MathPublic

Health

Science

Masters 2010-2011

28

205

4316 8

112

37

0

50

100

150

200

250

Computer Science

Education

Engineering

Library Science

Math

Public Health

Science

Education, Public Health and Engineering account for 80% of graduate Scholars

Doctoral 2010-2011

6

128

33

3 321

40

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

Computer Science

Education

Engineering

Library Science

Math

Public Health

Science

14 Scholars are enrolled in teacher certification programs

16

Female

Male

2010-2011 Graduate Field of Study by Gender

272

28

75

48 28

20 49110611

14

23

8 5

Computer Science

Education

Engineering

Library Science MathPublic

HealthScie

nce

GMS Graduate enrollment by

gender, fall 2010

Female71%

Male29%

GMS Graduation and Matriculation Rates

Graduate Transition Rate 2005-06 thru 2010-11

17.87%

16.50%

14.35%

16.90%

15.45%

13.61%

0.00%

2.00%

4.00%

6.00%

8.00%

10.00%

12.00%

14.00%

16.00%

18.00%

20.00%

2005-06

2006-07

2007-08

2008-09

2009-10

2010-11

GraduateTransition Rate

Fall 2010graduate transition by

program discipline

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2 2

28

1314

75

01020304050607080

Compu

ter S

cienc

eEd

ucat

ionEn

ginee

ring

Libra

ry S

cienc

e

Mat

h

Publi

c Hea

lthSc

ience

13.61 % (153) of last year’s undergraduate Seniors transitioned into GMS graduate funded programs

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Challenges and Key learnings

There are many hurdles to low income students’ graduate school enrollment

Academic performance/confidence Career aspirations/knowledgeChange of major (STEM disciplines)Fiscal resources: application/test fees, other costsFamily and community expectations

The money is not enough: low income and first generation students require graduate school – as distinct from post professional programs – to make sense 

Knowledge gap for student, family and communityCareer/job vs. graduate school: jobs winAcademic  burnout

Gender diversity: a significant challenge

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Going Forward…

•Graduate Studies Website

•Graduate Portal for Institution Provosts, Deans, or Admissions Officers

•Academic Empowerment and Student Support Services Revamp •Academic Advisement•Academic Handbook for newly admitted Scholars •Webinars•Leadership Academies

•Cue Group / LDP Strategic Planning initiative to assess our approach to increasing the matriculation rate of our Scholars  into graduate school

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Questions or Comments?