Student retention has become a difficult issue within higher education. As such, it is imperative to examine the causes, as well as provide educators with strategies to implement to improve retention rates. "Critical Assessment and Strategies for Increased Student Retention" is a pivotal reference source for the latest progressive research on a variety of current student success and attendance perpetuation issues. Featuring a broad range of coverage on a number of perspectives and topics, such as academic performance, counseling, and culture, this publication is geared towards practitioners, academicians, and researchers interested in understanding the difficulties with maintaining student retention. Academic areas covered in this publication include: (1) Academic Performance; (2) Counseling; (3) Culture; (4) Gender (5) Race; (6) Self-Efficacy; (7) Social Inequality; and (8) Socio-Economic Status. This book is divided into four sections. Section 1, "Retention Perspectives and Approaches," contains the following chapters: (1) Noncognitive Skills and Student Success: Relevance, Assessment, and Strategies (Ross Markle and Samuel H. Rikoon); (2) Study Abroad Effect on Retention and Student Success (Eric Canny); (3) The Predictive Role of Gender and Race on Student Retention (Gokhan Savas); and (4) The Role of Values, Beliefs, and Culture in Student Retention and Success (Julie M. Little, Scott Gaier, and Danielle Spoutz). Section 2, "Supporting and Encouraging Student Success," includes: (5) Factors That Influence the Retention of Freshmen Students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities: A Theoretical Assessment (Samuel L. Hinton); (6) Looking Beyond the Academic Institution for Retention and Student Engagement Models: A Study of Employee Engagement in a Rapidly Growing Worldwide Marketing Company (Alexandra McDermott Wilcox and Ruth Claire Black); (7) Anonymous Online Learning in Korea and Integrating Anonymous Learning Elements (Alan Cromlish); (8) Supporting At-Risk, Underrepresented, and Female Undergraduate Students to Advance Directly to an MBA (Helen Eckmann); and (9) Coaching Based on the Hope Model to Address Student Success in South Korean Educational Institutions (Alan Cromlish and Ruth Claire Black). Section 3, "Assessing the Impact of Retention and Success Programs," contains: (10) Boosting Retention Through a Foundation of Academic Advising (Sean Nemeth); (11) Holistic Perspective on Student Retention: Focus Master's Programmes (Neeta Baporikar); and (12) Retention, Retention, Retention: Exploring Retention Solutions at a Private London University (Kate Armstrong). Finally, section 4, "Pedagogy and Program Design to Support Retention and Student Success," includes: (13) Maximizing Retention and Progression to Graduation in Online Programs: A Case Study in "Designing with the End in Mind" (Mary E. Mancini, Daisha Jane Cipher, and Darab Ganji); (14) From Cramming and Convenience to Engagement and Retention: Four Pillars of Online Course Design for Student Retention (Laura Michelle Galloway); (15) Realizing Their Potential, Shaping Their Greatness: Using Self-Efficacy in a Graduate Reading Program to Shape K-6 Student Success (Allyson Leggett Watson, Meagan Moreland, and Melinda Smith); (16) Cognition and the First Year Experience: How Studying the Mind Equips Students for Learning (Ryan Korstange and Kevin Krahenbuhl); and (17) Communication as a Retention Factor in Online Course Delivery (Judi Simmons Estes).