UAHA Scholarship Impact

FIRST-YEAR TUITION SCHOLARSHIP
RETENTION, GRADUATION, AND GPA OUTCOMES

key academic outcomes for new first-year UAHA Tuition Scholarship recipients (UAHA Scholars) enrolled in Fall 2016 to Fall 2022.  These students received the UAHA incoming first-year tuition scholarship and enrolled in required student success courses. The UAHA Scholars program seeks to improve academic outcomes for Arizona resident students through financial support and student success course engagement.   

Program Overview 

  • Renewable tuition scholarships of up to $4,000 per academic year and $16,000 over four years. 
  • UAHA engages students in activities designed to enhance academic success, including required success courses in the fall and spring of the students’ first year. Students are encouraged to participate in Thrive Center and Guerrero Student Center programming.

“Scholarships can make all the difference for students and their families. Coupled with student support services, UAHA scholarships have supported record breaking retention and persistence rates among recipients.” 

- Marla Franco PhD, VP HSI Initiatives

 

Fellowship_icon

Through UAHA’s partnerships
with the Guerrero Student
Center and the Thrive Center
in 2022, UAHA scholars take
required success courses and
familiarize themselves with
these centers’ services.

Retention_icon

This financial and holistic
support helps to retain these
scholars, mostly Latinx
students, into a second year
and beyond.

Scholarship_icon

UAHA’s scholarship
programs ultimately
support the UA’s mission
as a Hispanic Serving
Institution to educate
Latinx students.

 

Summary of Key Findings

 

  • Since 2016, UAHA scholarship recipients have retained at 92% or higher, consistently exceeding% the UA average for new First-Time students at main campus.

     

  • UAHA tuition scholarship recipients had higher term and cumulative GPAs than the matched peer group in AY 22-23.

     
  • 13 other first-time students received an expanded $10,000. UAHA Club scholarship, made possible by added funding; all of these students were retained.

95%

Retention rate
among UAHA
Scholars

89%

Retention rate
in peer group

In AY 22-23, UAHA tuition scholarship recipients saw a 6% lift in their 1st year retention rate when compared to a matched peer group.

2016-2022 Historical Retention Rates

First-Time One-Year Retention Rates: UAHA Scholars compared to UA main campus.

HSIUAretention16-22

Note: Only first-time students, including both FT and PT, were included in this analysis.

2022 UAHA Scholars Cohort Impact Analysis

The outcomes of the 2022 UAHA Scholars cohort give us the clearest picture of the program’s impact. The Fall 2022 UAHA Scholars cohort had an academic year entirely uninterrupted by pandemic restrictions. In this year a strong partnership between UAHA, Guerrero Student Center, and Thrive Center was formalized, with Thrive Center offering the success course in the fall & and Guerrero Student Center offering the success course in the spring.

Retention

The 2022 UAHA scholarship recipient cohort of 38 almost all identify as Latinx, all receive merit aid, and come to the UA with average UA-adjusted high school GPA in the cohort of 3.76.

  • 97% of the 2022 UAHA scholarship recipient cohort returned for a second semester, and 95% for a second year.
  • This figure is higher than both the overall retention rate for new-First-Time students who arrive at the UA in Fall 2022 (81%) and for the matched peer group in this report (89%).

$10,000 UAHA Club Scholarship – First-Year Retention

UAHA was also able to offer a $10,000 club scholarship in 2022-23 enabled by a recent gift.
Eligibility for the UAHA club scholarship was for UAHA club scholars with a 2.5 GPA or higher enrolled full-time to complete 24 or more units in an academic year. Scholarship recipients were selected based on committee review by Hispanic Alumni Club volunteers and UA Alumni Association staff. Award decisions were based on academic merit, financial need, and other relevant measurable qualities of the applicants.

  • Twenty-four students in total received UAHA’s new $10,000 club scholarship in 2022-23. In contrast to the tuition scholarship, this funding is stackable with other scholarships and can cover the cost of attendance beyond tuition. No programming or coursework was required.
  • Of these students, 13 were new first-year undergraduates; there were also two sophomores, two juniors, six seniors, and one graduate student. The first-year club scholarship students are a distinct group from those receiving the UAHA tuition scholarship described earlier. 
  • 100% of the 13 first-time $10,000 club scholarship students were retained for a second year.

 

About UAHA: UAHA was formed in 1982 to serve the Hispanic community by promoting academic excellence among all students. As an official constituent group of the University of Arizona Alumni Association, UAHA assists in the recruitment and graduation of Arizona students who are academically talented and qualify for financial aid.

First Year Scholarship Program Eligibility and Commitments: Eligibility guidelines include first-year students who are Arizona residents, have received a merit award, with an unweighted high school GPA of at least 3.0, who show knowledge, understanding, and commitment to Hispanic heritage and serving the Hispanic community. Students selected for the scholarship must enroll in two-semester first-year success courses, maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.0, and complete minimum units each year for scholarship renewal 

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