Determine completion status for every student — add_completion

Add columns to a data frame of student-level records that indicate whether a student completed a degree, and if so, whether their completion was timely.

Usage

add_completion_status(dframe, midfield_degree = degree)

Arguments

dframe: Working data frame of student-level records to which completion-status columns are to be added. Required variables are mcid and timely_term. See also add_timely_term().
midfield_degree: MIDFIELD degree data table or equivalent with required variables mcid and term_degree.

Value

A data frame in data.table format with the following properties: rows are preserved; columns are preserved with the exception that columns added by the function overwrite existing columns of the same name (if any); grouping structures are not preserved. The added columns are:

term_degree: Character. Term in which the first degree(s) are completed. Encoded YYYYT. Joined from midfield_degree data table.
completion_status: Character. Label each observation to indicate completion status. Possible values are: "timely", indicating completion no later than the timely completion term; "late", indicating completion after the timely completion term; and "NA" indicating non-completion.

Details

By "completion" we mean an undergraduate earning their first baccalaureate degree (or degrees, for students earning more than one degree in the same term). Additional degrees, if any, earned later than the term of the first degree are ignored.

In many studies, students must complete a degree in a specified time span, for example 4-, 6-, or 8-years after admission. If they do, their completion is timely; if not, their completion is late and they are grouped with the non-completers when computing a metric such as graduation rate.

Completion status is "timely" for students completing a degree no later than their timely completion terms. See also add_timely_term().

Examples

# Start with an excerpt from the student data set 
dframe <- toy_student[1:10, .(mcid)]

# Timely term column is required to add completion status column
dframe <- add_timely_term(dframe, toy_term)

# Add completion status column
add_completion_status(dframe, toy_degree)
#>               mcid term_i       level_i adj_span timely_term term_degree
#>             <char> <char>        <char>    <num>      <char>      <char>
#>  1: MCID3111158953  19881 01 First-year        6       19933        <NA>
#>  2: MCID3111159270  19881 01 First-year        6       19933       19913
#>  3: MCID3111160513  19881 01 First-year        6       19933        <NA>
#>  4: MCID3111162677  19881 01 First-year        6       19933       19913
#>  5: MCID3111164287  19881 01 First-year        6       19933       19913
#>  6: MCID3111171205  19881 01 First-year        6       19933       19913
#>  7: MCID3111172083  19881 01 First-year        6       19933       19913
#>  8: MCID3111213943  19891 01 First-year        6       19943       19903
#>  9: MCID3111248941  19901 01 First-year        6       19953       19943
#> 10: MCID3111250695  19901 01 First-year        6       19953        <NA>
#>     completion_status
#>                <char>
#>  1:              <NA>
#>  2:            timely
#>  3:              <NA>
#>  4:            timely
#>  5:            timely
#>  6:            timely
#>  7:            timely
#>  8:            timely
#>  9:            timely
#> 10:              <NA>

# Existing completion_status column, if any, is overwritten
dframe[, completion_status := NA_character_][]
#>               mcid term_i       level_i adj_span timely_term completion_status
#>             <char> <char>        <char>    <num>      <char>            <char>
#>  1: MCID3111158953  19881 01 First-year        6       19933              <NA>
#>  2: MCID3111159270  19881 01 First-year        6       19933              <NA>
#>  3: MCID3111160513  19881 01 First-year        6       19933              <NA>
#>  4: MCID3111162677  19881 01 First-year        6       19933              <NA>
#>  5: MCID3111164287  19881 01 First-year        6       19933              <NA>
#>  6: MCID3111171205  19881 01 First-year        6       19933              <NA>
#>  7: MCID3111172083  19881 01 First-year        6       19933              <NA>
#>  8: MCID3111213943  19891 01 First-year        6       19943              <NA>
#>  9: MCID3111248941  19901 01 First-year        6       19953              <NA>
#> 10: MCID3111250695  19901 01 First-year        6       19953              <NA>
add_completion_status(dframe, toy_degree)
#>               mcid term_i       level_i adj_span timely_term term_degree
#>             <char> <char>        <char>    <num>      <char>      <char>
#>  1: MCID3111158953  19881 01 First-year        6       19933        <NA>
#>  2: MCID3111159270  19881 01 First-year        6       19933       19913
#>  3: MCID3111160513  19881 01 First-year        6       19933        <NA>
#>  4: MCID3111162677  19881 01 First-year        6       19933       19913
#>  5: MCID3111164287  19881 01 First-year        6       19933       19913
#>  6: MCID3111171205  19881 01 First-year        6       19933       19913
#>  7: MCID3111172083  19881 01 First-year        6       19933       19913
#>  8: MCID3111213943  19891 01 First-year        6       19943       19903
#>  9: MCID3111248941  19901 01 First-year        6       19953       19943
#> 10: MCID3111250695  19901 01 First-year        6       19953        <NA>
#>     completion_status
#>                <char>
#>  1:              <NA>
#>  2:            timely
#>  3:              <NA>
#>  4:            timely
#>  5:            timely
#>  6:            timely
#>  7:            timely
#>  8:            timely
#>  9:            timely
#> 10:              <NA>