In higher education, many students do not complete their studies within the term allotted. A Dutch university implemented an intervention aimed to reduce this form of academic procrastination. The intervention consisted of three measures: (1) requiring students to acquire all first-year credits within their first year in university, (2) reducing…

This paper measures the effects of collegiate class size on college retention and graduation. Class size is a perennial issue in research on primary and secondary schooling. Few researchers have focused on the causal impacts of collegiate class size, however. Whereas college students have greater choice of classes, selection problems and nonrandom…

In this dissertation, I examine various factors shaping students' trajectories and opportunities later in life. In Chapter 1, I explore the role of grade retention policies. Grade retention as a remedial policy is controversial because the benefits of extra instruction time may not outweigh its costs. Previous research has primarily examined…

Virtual universities have developed considerably over the past decade, particularly on the African continent. They provide a way to deal with the considerable need to educate a large young population, but the lack of physical space can be a drawback that prevents students from succeeding and increasing dropout compared to a more traditional…

Community colleges serve the most diverse student populations in higher education yet have some of the lowest levels of faculty diversity in higher education. Retaining community college student cohorts through transfer/graduation is a goal, yet attaining this goal has been elusive, particularly for underrepresented minority (URM) community…

This study examined graduation and persistence among social and behavioral science students at a regional comprehensive university. Hazard analyses identified predictors of student trajectories, times at which predictors were more or less impactful, and interactions between predictors such that particular risk factors were more detrimental for…

This paper evaluates whether student loans given to poor students at a large university in Peru are effective in reducing the time-to-degree. It uses a methodology that avoids the "selection problem" because the students voluntarily request a loan depending on their economic situation. The econometric results confirm the negative effect…

National data from Monitoring the Future were used to examine patterns and predictors of college attendance. Samples of American 12th-grade students from 1977 to 2003 were followed for 7 years (modal ages 18-25; N = 10,020). College attendance and graduation patterns varied considerably over historical time and based on family background.…

First-generation female students in community colleges are dropping out and withdrawing from college at an alarming rate. There are women who are administrators and leaders in these institutions who were once first-generation college students. The research gleaned first-hand experiences from participants who were first-generation females. These…

"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) "Building a Grad Nation": New Report Finds More than Half of States Increased High School Graduation Rate, Number of "Dropout…

Findings are presented from studies of the academic and language achievement of 1,307 young immigrant students whose educational history was traced from their arrival in Canada and entry into primary education in the early 1990s until their graduation from secondary schools. Five major findings are reported: school mobility, disappearance and…

Great strides have been made by community school initiatives across the nation in their efforts to impact student achievement, attendance, student engagement, graduation rates, parent involvement and more. Data on community schools is growing and the authors encourage readers to review research reports and syntheses on results. The results…

In this paper I evaluate the effect of student aid on the success of academic studies. I focus on two dimensions, the duration of study and the probability of actually graduating with a degree. To determine the impact of financial student aid, I estimate a discrete-time duration model allowing for competing risks to account for different exit…

The United States has long been a model for accessible, affordable education, as exemplified by the country's public universities. And yet less than 60 percent of the students entering American universities today are graduating. Why is this happening, and what can be done? "Crossing the Finish Line" provides the most detailed exploration…

In this longitudinal study of 11,317 students, the retention and graduation rates of students with apparent and nonapparent disabilities were compared to students without disabilities. The annual retention and graduation rates (six years after matriculation) were similar for all students, regardless of the presence or absence of a disability…