Spring 2002

Volume 5 Number 2
A publication of Macon State College

Juniors & Seniors Make Up Growing Percentages of MSC Enrollment

By Sheron Smith

What Ashley Walker remembers most about her classes as a freshman and sophomore is that she "listened a lot and took tons of notes."

Her upper-division classes, which she began recently after transferring to Macon State College as a junior, are turning out a bit differently.

"I fell in love with college after gender studies, my first upper-division class," said Walker, 20, a Stratford Academy graduate majoring in communications. "Everybody read the material in advance and we spent class time debating and learning new theory. That's what upper-division classes will do - make you think, not just memorize."

Nearly five years after Macon State began offering bachelor of science degrees, the college's growing number of juniors and seniors are changing the academic culture.

"Faculty enjoy teaching freshmen and sophomores, but the more juniors and seniors you have, the more stimulating the academic environment is," said Macon State President David A. Bell. "Faculty enjoy sharing the excitement of their discipline with students who have chosen the same discipline as their major and are further along in their studies. And the intellectual development of juniors and seniors begins to have an impact on other classes they take, even those that are not in their majors."

Dr. Mimi Ford, an associate professor of accounting who teaches both introductory and advanced classes, said most students are more motivated by the time they reach their junior and senior years.

"They usually are more interested in the subject matter and show more responsibility and a take-charge attitude," she said. "It's a much different experience than teaching freshman and sophomores."

The percentage of students in Macon State's junior class is now comparable to most four-year state universities in Georgia. MSC's percentage of seniors hasn't yet caught up with most such institutions but will continue to grow as the College's baccalaureate mission matures.

According to MSC's Office of Institutional Research, juniors made up 14.6 percent of Macon State's enrollment in fall 2001, putting the college in the same statistical ballpark as Albany State University (15.5 percent), Armstrong Atlantic State University (15.5 percent), Augusta State University (16.8 percent), Clayton College & State University (18.9 percent), Fort Valley State University (17.8 percent), Savannah State University (16.9 percent) and State University of West Georgia (16.6 percent).
Seniors made up 8.8 percent of Macon State's enrollment in fall 2001. At most comparable state schools, the percentage of seniors was 20 percent to 25 percent.

The Board of Regents categorizes the state's 34 colleges and universities in five ways: major research universities, regional universities, state universities, state colleges and two-year colleges. State colleges have the unique mission of continuing to offer a variety of associate's degrees along with a sharp focus on baccalaureate programs that meet their regions' economic needs. State universities offer baccalaureate programs and some graduate degrees.

Bell said it's useful for Macon State to compare itself to state universities because of the variety of baccalaureate programs they offer and their healthy mix of student class levels. As the college's baccalaureate mission continues to expand over the next few years, he expects the percentage of Macon State seniors to become comparable to state universities.

The number of students graduating from Macon State with four-year degrees continues to rise each year. Thirteen students graduated in the first baccalaureate class in 1999. This spring, about 185 are scheduled to graduate with bachelor's degrees in business, communications, health services administration, health information management, information technology and public service.