The introduction of new graduation guarantees by institutions is an initiative designed to encourage students to complete their degree within the standard four-year time frame. Should a student be unable to complete their degree in four-years due to circumstances outside their control, the promising-institution will back up their guarantee by providing subsequent courses for free until the student successfully graduates.
On average, students take more than five and a half years to finish a four-year degree, according to CNNMoney. While each institution has a different set of stipulations for their graduation guarantees, most demand that students complete around 30 credits or more each academic year. Other strict guidelines, such as working 20 hours or less, must also be followed by students in order for the promising-institution to help them on their pathway to degree completion.
The promise by institutions is to help guide students through a graduation plan by removing any obstacles that may prevent them from finishing in four years. For example, some institutions promise to lower the number of credits required to graduate. If any delay could have reasonably been avoided by the school itself, then the institution claims that they will cover the costs of any additional courses beyond four years for which the student would otherwise have to pay.
