Given the high rate at which students report participation in cocurricular group experiences during college, it becomes critical to have a clear understanding of how these experiences related to both one another and educational outcomes. Existing research examined specific types of group experiences or simple involvement in general, failing to…

Research on the validity of psychosocial factors (PSFs) and other noncognitive predictors of college outcomes has largely ignored the practical benefits implied by the validity. We summarize evidence of the validity of PSF measures as predictors of college outcomes and then explain how this validity directly translates into improved identification…

This study examined second-term and second-year retention of freshmen (n=6,054) and nonfreshman transfer students (n=2,733) from DePaul University, a large, urban, private institution. The predictor variables included both achievement and noncognitive measures collected at DePaul and on the ACT Assessment. Two questions formed the basis for this…

The relationship between personality characteristics and academic success of college freshmen at a predominantly female campus was studied, using the Myers-Briggs Type indicator (MBTI) to measure personality and first-year grade point average to measure academic success. The comparative effectiveness of the MBTI and the traditional predictors…

It has been more than a decade since the U.S. Congress enacted the "Student Right-to-Know and Campus Security Act," which requires colleges and universities to make public their six-year degree completion rates. Based on the "Student Right-to-Know and Campus Security Act," prospective students and their parents are being encouraged to make…

The validity of students' first-quarter academic performance in predicting attrition at Central State University, Ohio, was investigated. It was hypothesized that freshmen who performed satisfactorily during the first quarter were more likely to complete their baccalaureate programs than were those who performed less well. Data on 287 students…

The effectiveness of noncognitive and cognitive variables in predicting student persistence was studied. A total of 698 black freshmen entering North Carolina Central University in 1978 were studied. Sixty-one percent of the sample were female; 83 percent were between 18 and 22 years old; and 65 percent were from cities and towns with populations…

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…

A study that investigated variables associated with the transfer process and the academic performance of students of the Lehigh County Community College (LCCC) who transferred to 4-year institutions during a defined fourteen and one-half month period is summarized. Information was sought as to colleges attended by the LCCC transfers, the validity…

This study examines the association between three outcomes of the freshman and sophomore years (retention, academic achievement and student rating of instruction) and the amount of exposure to three types of instructors (regular full-time faculty, adjunct faculty and graduate teaching assistants). This study uncovered little evidence that…

A model to distinguish persisters and nonpersisters at the University of North Carolina, Wilmington, was developed. Persisters and nonpersisters differed in background characteristics, attitudes toward and interaction with the university, opportunities to leave, and intentions. Responses to a mail survey were returned by 86 first-time freshmen…

Relationships among variables that may predict medical school graduates who will be licensed, will practice primary care medicine, and will select Ohio and southwestern Ohio as the location of their practice were evaluated with the 1980 initial graduating class of the Wright State University School of Medicine, Ohio. The following statistical…

Variables that best explain variance in student attrition for 168 freshmen students from a college of agriculture within a major midwestern university were studied in 1979. Variables were selected from a theoretical causal model of student attrition (Bean, 1981), a review of the literature (Bean, 1978), and five empirical investigations conducted…

A pilot project in performance funding was conducted at Tennessee Technological University. A random sample of 112 seniors participated in a special assessment exercise involving the American College Testing (ACT) Battery and the ACT College Outcome Measures Project. The participants also completed a questionnaire designed to elicit self-reports…

The Reading Progress Scale (RPS) was administered to 4,714 students from 46 courses ranging from accounting to welding at Lansing Community College in two studies conducted from fall 1975 to spring 1976. The scale which assesses reading skills sought to answer two research questions: (1) is the RPS a good indicator of student persistence in a…