This bulletin from the Center for Statistics (CS) attempts to shed light on the potential impact of new college eligibility requirements linking extracurricular participation to academic performance. The CS-sponsored longitudinal study, "High School and Beyond" (HS&B), was used as the data source for estimates; the information on…

The sample for this 2-year study of student absenteeism consisted of 6 comprehensive high schools, 3 from each of 2 urban school districts with 1,000 to 1,600 students and 60 to 70 full-time teachers. Highlights of the first-year findings summarized in this journal are based on the responses of nearly 8,000 students and 350 teachers. Attendance…

Four groups of students were compared on cumulative grade point average, total credit hours attempted, and differences between predicted and actual grade point average (GPA). The four groups of students were formed by the semester in which they declared a major: students declaring in the third semester made up one group, those declaring in the…

The effectiveness of measures used in the admissions process to predict performance in and/or graduation from a University of Minnesota dental hygiene program is examined. Students in classes entering from Fall 1977 through Winter 1979 were studied, and predictor and performance measures to be studied were identified by the program. Predictor…

This research brief presents data on transfer students in the University of Wisconsin (UW) system, with emphasis on student access, enrollment, and outcomes. Among the findings are the following: (1) The number of transfer students enrolled in the UW system reached a 10-year high of 9,684 in fall 1996, followed by a slight decline in fall 1997;…

The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) recently promulgated rules that make athletes' initial eligibility conditional upon the achievement of certain scores on college entrance examinations and completion of a specified high school curriculum with a minimum grade point average of 2.0 on a 4.0 scale. The changes were instituted to…

In 1987-88, the Commission on Athletics' Research Committee of the California Association of Community Colleges undertook a study of the effects of the requirement that college athletes maintain a 2.0 grade point average (GPA), the status of women's sports, the use of part-time coaches, and the types of courses used to satisfy transfer…

The validity of American College Testing Program (ACT) test scores and self-reported high school grades for predicting grades in specific college freshman courses was studied. Specific course grades are typically used to place students in remedial, standard, or advanced classes. These placement decisions, in turn, have immediate implications for…

There are both strengths and weaknesses of using standardized test scores as a criterion for admission to institutions of higher education. The relative importance of scores is dependent on the institution's degree of selectivity. In general, decision processes and admissions criteria are not well defined. Advantages of test scores include: use of…