All institutions of higher education receive support from different combinations of patrons holding different expectations about the rewards of their patronage. In fact, much of what goes on in colleges and universities is the result of accommodation of the interests of governmental, industrial, and philanthropic patrons mediated through the…

The study behaviors of Spanish-speaking students at a large two-year public college in the United States were studied using the Inventario de Comportamiento de Estudio (ECI) (L. Bliss, D. Vinay, and F. Koenigner), the Spanish version of the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory (C. Weinstein, 1987). Behaviors of these students were compared with…

Running a university is fast becoming more challenging than managing a large corporation, in part due to greater quality demands by more groups in the face of shrinking resources and budget cuts. This paper argues against universities conducting business as usual in the face of societal change and increasingly greater challenges, and presents…

The paper reviews findings, many of them unexpected, of college institutional research offices and other educational researchers listed under the following headings: the working student, the academic load, economic background, cooperation, cultural literacy, retention, and outcomes assessment. Noted findings include: the student who holds a…

A profile of master's programs and the relationship of the master's to the doctorate in affiliated programs were studied, based on survey responses from 52 programs, 43 of which were public and 12 private. It was found that the master's degree is a professional, practice-oriented degree for those interested in entry and midlevel positions in…

Patterns of corporate voluntary gift and tax support to colleges and universities are examined for 1965-1984, based on data from the Council for Financial Aid to Education. Growth in corporate gifts are compared with changes occurring simultaneously in tax-generated corporate support. Also considered are differences in corporate funding patterns…

The reciprocal relationship of college founding and social factors in the external environment was studied in connection with the first public junior college in three states. The three cases were: Saginaw Junior College (reportedly established in 1895 in Michigan); McCook Junior College (1926, Nebraska); and Springfield Junior College (1917,…

This study examined the relationship between the time taken to obtain a baccalaureate degree and the type of financial aid received and/or student employment. Institutional data were analyzed for 4,403 nontransfer students attending a large urban public university. Data sets analyzed included: a longitudinal student master file, the undergraduate…

This study sought to develop a causal model for college persistence based upon students' degree aspirations 4 years into the college experience. It is based on a subset of data from the 1986 and follow-up 1990 Cooperative Institutional Research Program survey, namely 1,473 students attending 261 institutions. The model examined five sets of…

The First Amendment rights of students at public universities and colleges are well established by federal and state courts. Where a publication has been created as a forum for student expression, college authorities may not exercise anything but advisory control over editorial decisions of student editors. On-line student newspapers and literary…

This paper reports on findings of a multi-faceted preliminary study designed to identify the technical information needs of academic department chairpersons at a public urban university. Study methodology involved: (1) two 2-hour focus group sessions in which a total of 10 department chairpersons participated; (2) short written reports from the…

This paper illustrates how planning, with the aid (or complicity) of institutional research, can be a revolutionary activity that facilitates change within an organization and brings the organization to a more accurate understanding of itself. It describes the use of strategic planning at Minot State University (North Dakota) to change a culture…

This study examined distance education at Tennessee Board of Regents institutions of higher education. Both four-year and two-year institutions were surveyed via electronic mail. Thirty-five percent of the surveys were returned. The results indicated that all responding institutions were involved in distance education, specifically to reach…

This study examined the impact of state budget cuts on public colleges and universities in six states, focusing on the effects of such cuts on institutional priorities and plans, tuition and fees, and educational quality. Five state higher education finance officers, 12 state college or university system finance officers, and 98 college or…

This study examined first- to second-semester persistence of first-time, full-time college freshmen at a public four-year institution, focusing on Tinto's (1993) concept of separation. Data were collected from 689 first-time, full-time freshmen using the Cooperative Institutional Research Program 1995 Student Information Form, and from 411…