DataRobot Case Studies Florida International University Triples Graduation Rates by Aiding At-Risk Students

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	Florida International University Triples Graduation Rates by Aiding At-Risk Students DataRobot

Florida International University Triples Graduation Rates by Aiding At-Risk Students

DataRobot

Technology Category	Analytics & Modeling - Machine Learning Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) - Cloud Computing
Applicable Industries	Education
Applicable Functions	Human Resources Business Operation
Services	Data Science Services
Challenge	Florida International University (FIU) is a top-50 public university that serves a diverse student body of more than 58,000 and 260,000 Panther alumni. Many of these students come from low-income areas or may be the first generation to attend college. The university has a proactive approach to keep students in school, which depends on spotting signs of trouble. However, the previous modeling tools used by FIU produced inaccurate results and required exhaustive manual input. The out-of-the-box solutions weren’t tailored to the nuances of their institution, they would flag students that weren’t actually at-risk. Read More
About Customer	Florida International University is a top-50 public university that drives real talent and innovation in Miami and globally. High research activity and high social mobility come together at FIU to uplift and accelerate learner success in a global city focusing in the areas of environment, health, innovation, and justice. Today, FIU has two campuses and multiple centers. FIU serves a diverse student body of more than 58,000 and 260,000 Panther alumni. U.S. News and World Report places dozens of FIU programs among the best in the nation, including international business at No. 2. Washington Monthly Magazine ranks FIU among the top 20 public universities contributing to the public good. Read More
Solution	FIU turned to DataRobot’s cloud-based augmented intelligence and ML platform to cut modeling time, enable more customized predictions, and reduce costs over on-premise options. The university pulls a number of variables into models to pinpoint opportunities to assist students, from the number of credits taken to grades to financial challenges. Paden Goldsmith, Assistant Director of Strategic Data Analysis, continuously evaluates which data will help predict student success – with help from DataRobot’s data science experts. The university then takes steps to help students remain in school, from tutoring to success coaching to finding financial aid solutions. Read More Log in to view content
Contents

Technology Category

Analytics & Modeling - Machine Learning

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) - Cloud Computing

Applicable Industries

Education

Applicable Functions

Human Resources

Business Operation

Services

Data Science Services

Challenge

Florida International University (FIU) is a top-50 public university that serves a diverse student body of more than 58,000 and 260,000 Panther alumni. Many of these students come from low-income areas or may be the first generation to attend college. The university has a proactive approach to keep students in school, which depends on spotting signs of trouble. However, the previous modeling tools used by FIU produced inaccurate results and required exhaustive manual input. The out-of-the-box solutions weren’t tailored to the nuances of their institution, they would flag students that weren’t actually at-risk.

About Customer

Florida International University is a top-50 public university that drives real talent and innovation in Miami and globally. High research activity and high social mobility come together at FIU to uplift and accelerate learner success in a global city focusing in the areas of environment, health, innovation, and justice. Today, FIU has two campuses and multiple centers. FIU serves a diverse student body of more than 58,000 and 260,000 Panther alumni. U.S. News and World Report places dozens of FIU programs among the best in the nation, including international business at No. 2. Washington Monthly Magazine ranks FIU among the top 20 public universities contributing to the public good.

Solution

FIU turned to DataRobot’s cloud-based augmented intelligence and ML platform to cut modeling time, enable more customized predictions, and reduce costs over on-premise options. The university pulls a number of variables into models to pinpoint opportunities to assist students, from the number of credits taken to grades to financial challenges. Paden Goldsmith, Assistant Director of Strategic Data Analysis, continuously evaluates which data will help predict student success – with help from DataRobot’s data science experts. The university then takes steps to help students remain in school, from tutoring to success coaching to finding financial aid solutions.

Impact #1	With DataRobot, FIU now runs models faster and more frequently. With that extra time, Goldsmith refines data sources and searches for new ones.
Impact #2	Such efficiency allows the Institutional Research Office to operate with just one fulltime data scientist with a couple of other team members supporting him part-time. To achieve the same results, he suspects they would have needed at least another full-time data scientist.
Impact #3	Beyond the staff savings, the university saves tens of thousands in infrastructure costs over having in-house hardware, software, and maintenance for analytics applications. What’s more, the cloud model provides peace of mind that data is protected in extreme weather.

Impact #1

With DataRobot, FIU now runs models faster and more frequently. With that extra time, Goldsmith refines data sources and searches for new ones.

Impact #2

Such efficiency allows the Institutional Research Office to operate with just one fulltime data scientist with a couple of other team members supporting him part-time. To achieve the same results, he suspects they would have needed at least another full-time data scientist.

Impact #3

Beyond the staff savings, the university saves tens of thousands in infrastructure costs over having in-house hardware, software, and maintenance for analytics applications. What’s more, the cloud model provides peace of mind that data is protected in extreme weather.

Benefit #1	FIU has identified 10 percent more at-risk students than before – contributing to student success and graduation rates.
Benefit #2	In an impressive turnaround, FIU increased its graduation rate from 19 percent to 59 percent over 10 years.

Benefit #1

FIU has identified 10 percent more at-risk students than before – contributing to student success and graduation rates.

Benefit #2

In an impressive turnaround, FIU increased its graduation rate from 19 percent to 59 percent over 10 years.

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Overview

Florida International University Triples Graduation Rates by Aiding At-Risk Students

Operational Impact

Quantitative Benefit