college readiness

A collaborative study between the National FFA Organization and Purdue University1 in 2018-19 explored the relationship between involvement in FFA and college and career readiness, representing the largest sample of FFA members to date in all existing published research on FFA members. Involvement in FFA is correlated with academic success. The three-component model of school-based agricultural education revolves around the integral relationship between classroom instruction, work-based learning through a supervised agricultural experience program, and membership in FFA. FFA does not exist without classroom instruction and school-based agriculture programs, in which student academic success is of high importance. This study provided the first baseline of FFA members’ academic success and revealed that FFA members possess academic scores that are higher than the national average. FFA members show higher ACT and SAT scores on average than the 2018 high school graduating class average. FFA members have a collective average ACT score of 23.5, compared to the national average of 20.8. FFA members have a collective average SAT score of 1152, compared to the national average of 1068. Additionally, [...]

In 2018, a collaborative study between Purdue University and the National FFA Organization1 explored the relationship between involvement in FFA and college and career readiness. Then in September 2019, National FFA conducted a follow-up study with a new sample of graduating FFA members during the first semester of their senior year in high school. Results show that FFA seniors continue to be college- and career-ready, as seen below. Impressive Grade Point Averages Set FFA Seniors Apart National FFA asked surveyed seniors to report their GPA. On a 4.0 unweighted scale, self-reported GPAs remain high among FFA seniors, with an average GPA of 3.59 out of 4.0. Ninety-six percent of graduating seniors reporting their GPA have an A or B average. In the previous study, the average self-reported GPA was 3.69, with the same percentage of graduating seniors being A or B students. No reported grade point averages indicated that members earned below a C average. FFA Seniors’ Critical Thinking Capabilities Match With Employers’ Expectations A 2015 survey found that employers believe critical thinking is among the [...]