Chaminade University of Honolulu began its new academic year Aug. 26 with a record enrollment of 1,325 new and returning undergraduate students.
School officials attributed the historic high to a new “four-year guarantee” launched by the university this summer.
The four-year guarantee ensures a student will graduate in four years or less with a bachelor’s degree through an agreement with Chaminade. If the university does not meet its part of the agreement, it will cover the cost of the remaining courses required for completion of the degree.
If a major or graduation requirement is not available in the final year, Chaminade will pay for the remaining coursework needed to complete the degree. For further information, see www.chaminade.edu/advising/four_year_guarantee.php
“Parents in particular have warmly greeted the new four-year guarantee,” said Chaminade’s enrollment dean Joy Bouey. The guarantee applies to all full-time, degree-seeking undergraduates.
“We believe that students and their families deserve to be able to count on a timetable of four years for a college education,” Bouey said.
According to a recent news release, Chaminade is working to improve both retention and graduation rates. About half of its undergraduates are the first in their families to attend college. About 96 percent of undergraduate students receive scholarships, Pell grants or other financial aid. The university boasts the most ethnically diverse student body in the nation.
