Apply for the APLU Excellence in Student Success Award

APLU is pleased to announce the launch of our Excellence in Student Success Award, an evolution of our Degree Completion Award. Applications are now being accepted and you can review the application and guidelines here. The deadline to apply is June 30, 2025.

This award recognizes institutions demonstrating a comprehensive commitment to advancing student success through innovative approaches. It celebrates universities that implement effective strategies supporting degree completion, career readiness, and improved student outcomes while addressing the unique challenges in higher education today. The Excellence in Student Success Award complements APLU’s ongoing student success initiatives and provides member institutions with a platform to share effective practices that may be adapted or scaled by others in our community.

All APLU member institutions are encouraged to apply for the 2025 Excellence in Student Success Award, creating an opportunity to showcase your innovative approaches and contribute to the collective knowledge base as we work together to advance student success across public higher education. The application has been designed to allow institutions to effectively communicate their unique approaches while providing substantive evidence of impact.

Finalists will be notified in September, and the winner will be announced during the APLU Annual Meeting in November 2025. Up to four finalists will be featured at the APLU Annual Meeting, where representatives will have the opportunity to present their work and participate in discussions about innovative student success practices.

For questions or additional information, please contact ESS@aplu.org.

Lastly, as a reminder, APLU has four other institutional awards designed to highlight achievements in community engagement; internationalization; innovation and economic prosperity; and public impact research. The application periods for those awards opened last month. You can read more about those awards and how to apply for them here.