Cleveland State University launched a series of success initiatives in 2012 to help students graduate on time and with less debt, and those initiatives are paying off for students and their families.

CSU ranks second best among public universities in Ohio for average student debt per borrower, according to LendEDU.com, which helps students with loans and personal finance. The average CSU graduate’s debt is $1,828 below the state average of both public and private institutions.

LendEDU analyzed financial aid data for the class of 2015 recently released by Peterson's, according to Cleveland.com. The data was reported through a survey of 1,370 four-year public and private colleges.

Cleveland State’s comprehensive suite of student success initiatives include:

• Multi-Term Registration: CSU was the first state university in Ohio -- and one of the first in the United States -- to offer multi-term registration, which lets students plan their entire academic year in advance, allowing students to stay on track to graduation while saving time and money.
• Demand-Driven Enrollment: CSU offers course waitlists that make it possible for students to request enrollment via an online waiting list for a course at full capacity. The program assists students in insuring they can complete required courses and allows departments to better track demand.
• 120-Credit-Hour Standard for Graduation: Academic programs were required to reduce the average number of credit hours needed to complete most baccalaureate degree programs to 120. This allows students to complete college in less time, with less debt.
• Adjusted Tuition Band: This initiative lets students take up to six three-credit hour courses per semester at the same cost as four courses.

Since CSU implemented these student success initiatives, four-year graduation rates have doubled over the last five years. For more information, visit www.csuohio.edu/bigswitch/student-success-initiatives.