Report on Best Practices and Annual Progress toward the 55% Completion Goal
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| Title: | Report on Best Practices and Annual Progress toward the 55% Completion Goal |
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| Language: | English |
| Authors: | Maryland Higher Education Commission (MHEC) |
| Source: | Maryland Higher Education Commission. 2026. |
| Availability: | Maryland Higher Education Commission. 6 North Liberty Street, Baltimore, MD 21201; Tel: 800-974-0203; Tel: 410-767-3301; Web site: http://www.mhec.state.md.us |
| Peer Reviewed: | N |
| Page Count: | 173 |
| Publication Date: | 2026 |
| Document Type: | Reports - Descriptive |
| Education Level: | Higher Education Postsecondary Education Two Year Colleges |
| Descriptors: | College Graduates, Educational Attainment, Best Practices, Associate Degrees, Bachelors Degrees, Adults, Community Colleges, Public Colleges, Private Colleges, College Enrollment, Enrollment Trends |
| Geographic Terms: | Maryland |
| Abstract: | Over the last 13 years, the Maryland Higher Education Commission (MHEC) has reported on progress toward the state's goal to have at least 55% of Maryland's residents ages 25 to 64 holding at least one degree credential by 2025. The stated goal allowed the state and its institutions to progress in increasing the number of degrees produced by Maryland's colleges and universities (completion/production goals) and the number of educated Maryland residents. In this final year of reporting, the state's degree attainment rate is 52.5%, which is 2.5 percentage points below the goal set. Despite falling short of the goal, Maryland's colleges and universities exceeded their degree production goal by over 60,000 degrees (779,240 produced versus a goal of 718,209 degrees). This final report aims to do the following: (1) summarize the successes and challenges institutions and the state have had in the progress toward the 55% goal; (2) provide details and data on the degree production and degree attainment goals; and (3) provide a summary of institutional reports submitted to MHEC, which include reflections of successes and challenges institutions had in their efforts to support the 55% attainment goal. There are several sources of administrative and statewide data used for this report. First and foremost, statewide educational attainment and population data come from the United States Census Bureau and Maryland's Department of Planning. The degree counts that inform the model are taken from the 2025 Degree Information Systems (DIS) file. The data provided in this report, as well as the submissions supplied by institutions, reveal that institutions have worked hard over the past 12 years in an effort to support the statewide educational attainment goal. |
| Abstractor: | ERIC |
| Entry Date: | 2026 |
| Accession Number: | ED679670 |
| Database: | ERIC |
| Abstract: | Over the last 13 years, the Maryland Higher Education Commission (MHEC) has reported on progress toward the state's goal to have at least 55% of Maryland's residents ages 25 to 64 holding at least one degree credential by 2025. The stated goal allowed the state and its institutions to progress in increasing the number of degrees produced by Maryland's colleges and universities (completion/production goals) and the number of educated Maryland residents. In this final year of reporting, the state's degree attainment rate is 52.5%, which is 2.5 percentage points below the goal set. Despite falling short of the goal, Maryland's colleges and universities exceeded their degree production goal by over 60,000 degrees (779,240 produced versus a goal of 718,209 degrees). This final report aims to do the following: (1) summarize the successes and challenges institutions and the state have had in the progress toward the 55% goal; (2) provide details and data on the degree production and degree attainment goals; and (3) provide a summary of institutional reports submitted to MHEC, which include reflections of successes and challenges institutions had in their efforts to support the 55% attainment goal. There are several sources of administrative and statewide data used for this report. First and foremost, statewide educational attainment and population data come from the United States Census Bureau and Maryland's Department of Planning. The degree counts that inform the model are taken from the 2025 Degree Information Systems (DIS) file. The data provided in this report, as well as the submissions supplied by institutions, reveal that institutions have worked hard over the past 12 years in an effort to support the statewide educational attainment goal. |
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