John Tyler Community College (JTCC) conducts a regular investigation of students who leave the institution after one or more quarters of study in an effort to determine reasons for their withdrawal, objective for enrolling, goal achievement, and current occupational status and future educational goals. A systematic random sample of all…

Refund policies and practices at universities and four-year and two-year colleges that are members of the Higher Education Panel of the American Council on Education were surveyed. The focus was on policies regarding freshmen students who terminate their studies before completing their first term. Usable responses were received from 580…

The survey instruments that are a part of an ongoing systematic process of information gathering at Delaware County Community College (DCCC) form the bulk of this manual. Designed to familiarize the faculty and staff with the process of survey use for decision-making, the intended populations and the possible applications of data are described.…

A study was conducted at William Rainey Harper College (WRHC) to determine why students withdrew from courses at two off-campus centers. Surveys were administered to a sample of 54 degree credit and 46 continuing education students who withdrew from classes at Hawthorne Center (HC) in fall 1981, and to 56 degree credit and 44 continuing education…

In January 1985, Glendale Community College (GCC) began a student follow-up system of data collection called TEX-SIS (Texas Student Information System) designed to evaluate instruction as well as student satisfaction with programs. Five major areas dealing with students were studied: student educational intent, student withdrawal (course, college,…

The interactive influence of student characteristics and eight measures of student-faculty relationships on the prediction of freshman year voluntary persistence/withdrawal decisions was studied. A questionnaire was sent to the total population of incoming freshmen at a large, independent, residential university in New York State. Usable responses…

A study, as part of a larger report on attrition and retention of students at Miami University, was undertaken to determine the reasons for withdrawing from the university prior to earning a degree. A questionnaire was mailed to the 1,026 students in the 1978 class who voluntarily left the institution and for whom correct addresses could be…

This is the second report of the Northern California Cooperative Research Project (NORCAL) on student attrition. Part I summarizes the findings of the initial NORCAL report on attrition characteristics (see ED 031 240) and compares them with other community college samples. It also discusses the validation of a predictive model for identifying…

The School District of the City of Saginaw (Michigan) has annually reported on the rate and nature of the dropout population; this dropout report is the eleventh edition of the state defined generation of dropout reports. One hundred and fourteen, or 5% of Saginaw's 2,292 students in grades 9-12, terminated their high school education between…

A study was conducted at San Jose City College (SJCC) of the factors that contributed to the academic success of a sample of students enrolled in fall 1990. Successful students were defined as those receiving a letter grade of A, B, C, or CR (credit) in Math 310, Learning Skills 340, and English 321. A randomly selected group of 39 students who…

A longitudinal study assessed the progress of 271 students of English as a Second Language (ESL) who had entered Project SEEK at Brooklyn College (New York) in the fall of 1985. The goals of the study were to identify factors predicting success or failure in academic courses, and to study attitudes of the students toward their second language and…

A study was conducted at Olympic College (OC) in the State of Washington, to investigate the personal and academic characteristics of student dropouts and their reasons for leaving the college. Questionnaires were sent to 500 fall 1986 students who completely withdrew from OC during the term or received all F's, W's, or other unproductive grades…

After the determination that the Principles of Accounting course offered at Herkimer County Community College, New York, had a higher attrition rate than other introductory courses, a study was conducted to develop a computer-assisted diagnostic system which could identify the learning deficiences of accounting students and prescribe corrective…

Claude Steeles' stereotype threat hypothesis posits that when there are negative stereotypes about the intellectual capacity of certain (stigmatised) groups, members of that group suffer aversive consequences; group members who are most strongly identified with the stigmatised domain in question (e.g., intellectual or academic ability) are those…

In 1982, a study was conducted at Calhoun State Community College (CSCC) to determine causes of student withdrawal and factors influencing re-enrollment. Questionnaires were administered to 985 individuals who withdrew from on-campus programs during the 1981-82 academic year; of these, 37 were returned by mail and 254 were completed in person or…