The most important challenge facing a student at Baylor University should be acquiring the best education the school offers. However, other issues can get in the way, including those related to financial uncertainty, mental health and wellness, and adjusting to a new living environment, among others.
Data from Inside Higher Ed’s 2024 Student Voice survey indicates that over the past decade, the primary causes of mental health issues are the need to balance personal, economic, and family duties with schoolwork. Other factors included the prevalence of social media (33 percent) and a rise in loneliness (29 percent).
According to a 2022 study published in the Journal of Affective Disorders, during the 2020-2021 school year, more than 60 percent of students met the criteria for one or more mental health issues, representing a nearly 50 percent increase since 2013.
Baylor has addressed these issues head-on, and the results speak for themselves. The retention rate for the class of 2027 stands at 90.93 percent—the highest rate in the University’s history. The four-year graduation rate was recorded at 71.3 percent, an increase of 4 percent since 2022.
“When I started this job 14 years ago, we were at about 81 percent fall-to-fall retention with our freshmen classes and had a four-year graduation rate of around 54 percent,” said Dr. Wes Null, Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education and Academic Affairs. “We are now at almost 91 percent freshman retention, and we’ll land at a 74 percent graduation rate with this class that’s graduating this May.”
Baylor is ranked ninth in the Best Colleges in Texas list based on its 2025 graduation rate, as published on the CollegeRaptor website.
For perspective, almost half of students in the United States finish their bachelor’s degree in four years, and the nationwide six-year graduation rate in 2023 was 62.6 percent. According to 2022 statistics from the National Center for Educational Statistics, 46.8% of Texas college graduates earn bachelor’s degrees.
Starting on Day One
Dr. Null explains that Baylor begins the caring mission of its incoming students before they start their first academic year.
“We have an orientation experience we call Line Camp that happens during the summer before students start at Baylor,” Dr. Null said. “They spend four days playing games, enjoying different programs and various workshops, and getting excited about attending Baylor. Then, on the weekend before classes start, we host our official Welcome Week. We try to keep everyone busy and engaged as they make their transition to college life.”
In their first few weeks at Baylor, students are invited to participate in many events around campus. As they become more comfortable in their new environment, surveys are used to evaluate student wellbeing.
“We ask our first-semester students between weeks three and six all kinds of questions, such as how they’re adjusting to college life, whether they’ve made a personal connection with a professor, and if things are going okay,” Dr. Null said. “It’s a long 30-plus-question survey, and we get a 95 percent response rate that truly guides us in assisting students on an individual basis.”
Academic success is vital to being healthy, happy, and safe at Baylor, but sometimes, simple and smart strategies win the day. Dr. Null takes particular pride in the decision to have a faculty member and their family living in an apartment within each residence hall. They are there to provide easy access to students who may need help and advice from someone you trust who lives close by. Baylor has 20 faculty residents, and each residence hall also has its own Chaplain and Hall Director.
“We have a First In Line program specifically for first-generation students, as well as a program for student veterans and their family members,” Dr. Null said. “In addition, we provide a student food pantry that distributes hundreds of pounds of food each day to students facing food insecurity. Reflecting on our experiences during COVID-19, our goal is to ensure that we are prepared with such programs for a future where students can thrive academically, no matter what happens.”
Where Health Meets Wellness
Student health and wellness are supported by a multifaceted group of departments: the Counseling Center, Health Services, Student Care & Wellbeing, and Campus Recreation. Together, these teams offer activities to encourage students to stay physically fit and have fun, as well as facilities to help those in need of mental and physical medical resources.
“The Counseling Center is the primary resource for mental health services and has a full-time staff of 27,” said Dr. Jim Marsh, Dean of Student Health and Wellness. “We have psychologists, licensed clinical social workers, licensed married and family therapists, and licensed professional counselors. Basically, every mental health license in the state of Texas. The three most common issues we address are anxiety, depression, and relationship problems.”
Of course, everything changed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We knew there was no way we were going to meet the demand, so we partnered with a third party, Academic Live Care, which provides telehealth counseling 24/7,” Dr. Mash said.
The Health Center has a staff of 34 and provides primary care, psychiatry, physical therapy, and a pharmacy with its staff of MDs, DOs, and nurse practitioners. Another department, more closely focused on mental health, is the Beauchamp Addiction Recovery Center (BARC). This team works with students in recovery from different types of substance use while hosting regular events across campus to make sure students know the resources available to them. The health teams are closely connected to the local medical community and manage referrals for any student requiring resources unavailable on campus.
“Our Student Care & Wellbeing department consists of five team members, and their job is to make sure no student falls through the cracks,” Dr. Marsh said. “They see around 2,700 students each year, addressing issues ranging from academic stress to food insecurity, but they work with them on really just about everything. Basically, they connect students with the resources they need.”
Physical Fitness Ties to Wellness
A critical part of helping students integrate themselves into college life is encouraging them to become involved with the right student groups and club sports, or to join a sorority or fraternity.
“Students will find just about any kind of club you can think of, from Quidditch to club soccer,” Dr. Null said. “You name it, we’ve got a club for it.”
Keeping students physically active and having fun is also key to their happiness. Whether a student was a star athlete at high school or is new to a sport, Baylor’s Campus Recreation intramural sports program has them covered.
“We know that students who participate in intramural sports make better grades and retain at higher rates,” Dr. Marsh said. “There are close to 40 club sports, and those teams compete against other universities around the country. We also have a marina and the Eastland Lakes, which means we have kayaking, paddle boarding, biking, and all kinds of outdoor adventures. I think we’re one of the most active — if not the most active — campus in the Big 12 when it comes to the number of our students who participate in intramurals.”
Another benefit of the student health and wellness departments is that they provide graduate students with numerous opportunities for internships and complete practicum experiences. In addition, more than 250 undergraduate students support the 17 full-time members of the Campus Recreation team. Students not only contribute but also receive an educational experience.
Feeling Safe and Secure
In light of recent violent episodes targeting educational institutions across the country, campus security is now a more than $3 billion industry annually. As a result, one of the most important challenges at Baylor University is to maintain an environment where students and staff can feel comfortable and safe so they can complete their mission. Donald J. Rodman, Senior Director of Public Safety and Security, describes his own mission in this way.
“Yes, we consider ourselves law enforcement, but we also think of ourselves as educators,” Rodman said. “Our goal is to explain our expectations for student behavior and teach them how to keep themselves safe. We do that by attending all orientation sessions and requiring all students to complete a set of modules to make sure they learn about the tremendous resources we have to offer. We also host outreach events, like “Coffee with Cops,” so students can connect with us. We also visit the residence halls where we’ll host educational training and serve pizza.”
Over recent years, security has been enhanced with more than 2,000 cameras, setting up a “virtual fence” providing visual data to monitor anyone walking on campus. Identity cards that could have been duplicated easily were replaced with an app on a smartphone. There are also more than 80 emergency blue light phones on campus, strategically located for rapid officer response. However, perhaps the most exciting new strategy is the introduction of the innovative Baylor University Campus Guardian smartphone application.
“This app gives students the ability to have the BU police department at the tip of their fingers,” Rodman said. “If at any point a student doesn’t feel safe, they can push a button, and our dispatchers know their exact location. You can use the app to text one of our dispatchers for information — such as when the next late-night bus will arrive — or you can use it to report anonymous tips.”
The Department of Public Safety and Security comprises 100 personnel, including more than 40 police officers, 25 security staff, and 10 dispatchers.
“We patrol 24/7, 365 days a year. We’re always here,” Rodman said. “I like to say that Baylor is a city within a city. We have 20,000 students, several thousand faculty and staff, and on any given day, we can have an influx of over 50,000 people attending a football match. In 2024, we received just under 35,000 calls for service. Of course, that could be someone reporting a lost phone or requesting someone to walk them from the library to a residence hall. Overall, our strategy is education through preparation, which allows us to be proactive in preventing any problems.
“Being a community of faith has given us a great reminder of where our hope lies every day,” he continued. “There’s a joyful spirit among the people here at Baylor who genuinely just care for each other, and truly, that’s what makes Baylor so special.”
