What Every College Administrator Should Know about Predictive Analytics

Manuela Ekowo wrote for the EvoLLLution about the myths of predictive analytics on college campuses:

Predictive analytics are making their way onto college campuses. 40 percent of colleges report using this data on campus. Schools that are using predictive analytics are identifying and preventing problems before they happen, rather than after the fact. The most common uses of predictive data are to help institutions meet enrollment or student success goals.

Predictive analytics can help colleges determine which students they should aggressively recruit. Or, how to personalize each student’s academic experience once they enroll to help make sure they stay in college and finish their program. Take Georgia State University’s use of predictive analytics. A public research university in Atlanta, the university uses predictive analytics to pinpoint students who are at risk of steering off track in their programs. In one year alone, the university was able to convene over 51,000 in-person meetings between students and their advisors. Over 51,000! By increasing their advising staff and centralizing their advising system, Georgia State is the only university of it’s type to have pulled off something else pretty amazing: eliminating the achievement gap for low-income, first-generation and students of color.