Freshman student retention has become a major focus in higher education. The loss of incoming students is not only financially burdensome to the institution, but it can be academically and personally discouraging for students. Many theoretical constructs have been applied to the problem of student attrition, including the individual constructs of…

These Web Tables provide an overview of classes taken and credits earned by a nationwide sample of first-time beginning postsecondary students based on data from the Postsecondary Education Transcript Study (PETS) of the 2004/09 Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study. PETS collected transcripts from all the postsecondary institutions…

The goal of this study was to illustrate survival analysis with higher education data and gain insight into a limited set of factors that predict when students passed their first-year examination at a Dutch university. Study participants consisted of 565 first-year students in four departments. Data were collected on when students pass their…

Introduction: Premature withdrawal from university due to academic failure can present problems for students, families and educators. In an effort to widen the understanding regarding factors predicting academic success in higher institutions, prior academic achievement measures (preparatory school grade average point (GPA), aptitude test scores,…

This study examined the gender-related differential predictive validity of five subscales of the Institutional Integration Scale (IIS) with regard to college student withdrawal. Differential functioning of the IIS across genders was assessed using an item response theory (IRT)-based framework of differential item and test functioning. The results…

With over two thirds of high school graduates going on to pursue postsecondary options after high school and over one fourth at 4-year institutions and nearly half at 2-year schools never reaching their sophomore year, it is evident that the transition from high school to college is a broken one for many students. There has been a nationwide call…

As much as it is eagerly anticipated, freshman year is often a time of confusion, disorientation, and even alienation for many students. One in four college freshmen will drop out before completing sophomore year. The reasons for this high level of withdrawal vary, but a report suggests that new students often feel overwhelmed and unprepared for…

We examined the Big Five (De Raad, 2000) personality traits of Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Emotional Stability, Extraversion, and Openness, plus the narrow personality traits of Aggression, Career-Decidedness, Optimism, Self-Directed Learning, Sense of Identity, Tough-Mindedness, and Work Drive in relation to intention to withdraw from…

This study investigates the relationships between students' confidence in their generic skills on entry to university, their learning styles and their academic performance in first year. Research based on a large cohort of Scottish undergraduates found that students generally entered university feeling very confident that they already possessed…

Nor Cal Phase III was the experimental portion of the 3-year attrition study. The general purpose of the study was to design and test treatments aimed at reducing attrition among first-time freshmen entering community colleges. Twenty-eight colleges (22 in Northern California, five in Southern California and one out-of-state) were involved in…

The relationship between freshmen college persistence and self-report variables and objective academic indices is investigated. Follow-up data on persistence or non-persistence was gathered one and one-half years later, allowing one semester for attrition. Results indicate male non-persisters came from relatively low socioeconomic status families…

Provides insight into first-year undergraduate persistence by using behavioral measures--based on Alexander Astin's theory of involvement--to further understanding of Tinto's theory of student departure. Findings support the use of an integrated model in which student behaviors and perceptions interact to influence the development of academic and…

Finds that developmental reading students were as successful in college as low ACT nondevelopmental students but not as successful as the higher ACT students. Suggests that ACT scores and age were the best predictors of college success. Demonstrates the need for developmental classes for underprepared college freshmen. (RS)

A study investigated whether determinants of college students' decisions to withdraw from an institution are similar to those affecting decisions to transfer to other institutions. Subjects (n=2,954) were entering freshmen at a state university. Results indicated different factors discriminated between persisters and dropouts and between…