The UT System SmartBook is produced by the Office of Institutional Research and Analysis. It provides a handy, by-the-numbers overview of the mission areas of UT System and all of its institutions. This resource includes valuable data for UT students, faculty, and employees, as well as research/technology transfer and budget/finance data.
Phase 1: The Affordability Project. Enrollment, Financial Aid, Cost of Attendance, and Wages: Completers vs Non-Completers
For students who make an investment in higher education but do not complete a degree, the returns may not outweigh the costs. This paper examines multiple cohorts of first-time college students attending University of Texas academic institutions, examining their enrollment and completion patterns, financial aid, estimated cost of attendance, and post-exit wages to provide a holistic assessment of affordability that moves beyond access (cost and debt) to also consider the outcomes, or returns, and how that value shifts for those who do not complete their degree. / October 2025
Investigating Graduation Outcomes Using Survival Analysis
Survival analysis is a statistical technique used to examine the occurrence and timing of events. Building off numerous studies where survival analysis was successfully utilized to examine graduation outcomes, this study uses survival analysis to analyze the timing of graduation for University of Texas (UT) System students. Covariates associated with graduation—such as student characteristics or academic factors—are presented to help explain which factors are associated with completion. The timing of dropout is also explored. / July 2025