Over the past decade, retention studies at Hudson County Community College (HCCC), in New Jersey, have consistently placed the college at or near the bottom of a group of 19 New Jersey community colleges in terms of retention. In an effort to determine why students were leaving and develop responses to student attrition, a presidential task force…

A study identified factors that influence students to enroll in postsecondary vocational programs and factors that contribute to their continual enrollment. Three Arkansas vocational schools--White River, Gateway, and Ozarka--were the focus of the study. Questionnaires were submitted to students and staff regarding recruitment/retention to…

A longitudinal study was conducted to determine the factors influencing college student persistence in remaining in school. Persistence was examined at two points: after the first year and 4 years after enrollment. The study was conducted at an urban university using the American College Testing's Entering Student Survey and Student Opinion…

In an effort to form baseline data and information on the activity of learners participating in courses offered by Athabasca University, an individual learner tracking study was initiated. A random selection of 38 learners submitted weekly forms indicating their level of activity in courses, their motivational level, and the amount of contact they…

This publication from Australia reports on an investigation directed at possible explanations of why students in the state of Victoria remain to complete secondary school, and why schools themselves vary in their capacity to retain students to year 12. Chapter 1 provides perspectives on this topic from past research and identifies three domains of…

Compared characteristics of students (N=180) who withdrew from a university after completing two years of a baccalaureate program. Dropouts, stopouts, and transfers reported that four factors were related to withdrawal decisions: academic environment, financial demands, career focus, and social/personal environment. Discusses implications of…

Glass' (1976) meta-analytic techniques were used to integrate findings from 59 independent evaluations of computer-based college teaching. The meta-analysis found little relationship among study findings and design features of the experiments, settings for the studies, or manner and date of publication of the findings. (Author/GK)

A study used theory elaboration to help revise Tinto's interactionalist theory of individual student departure from college to include the effects of organizational attributes on student withdrawal. Results provide strong support for including concepts from organizational theory and suggest future research should use theory elaboration to look for…

This study was carried out with students and staff from a college of further education in south London. The college has a mix of male and female students from a range of ethnic groups, the largest of which is white British. A study undertaken by the college in 2003 indicated that there may be significant differences in achievement and completion…

A study was undertaken at College of the Canyons, in California, to determine the underlying reasons for student attrition. Questionnaires were mailed to all 2,511 students who had officially withdrawn from the college between fall 1992 and spring 1994. A total of 391 completed questionnaires were returned for a response rate of 16%. Results…

In 1989, Johnson County Community College (JCCC, Kansas) conducted studies of "leavers"--students who had been enrolled at JCCC during a specific period of time and had not graduated, earned a certificate, transferred to another college or university, or left the college with marketable skills developed in one of JCCC's career programs.…

Tinto's conceptual schema of college dropout forms the theoretical framework for the development of a model of university student dropout intention. This study validated Tinto's model in two different departments within a single university. Analyses were conducted on a sample of 684 college freshmen in the Education and Economics Department. A…

This paper summarizes the first year of research at Tompkins Cortland Community College, Dryden, New York, to develop an alternative process for determining characteristics of graduates and leavers from the college, and to uncover attitudes of those students about their college experience. The paper summarizes findings to date, although the author…

The first phase of a persistence study used research as a tool to develop advice for practitioners on how to help adults persist in their studies. The study team defined persistence as adults who stay in programs for as long as they can, engage in self-directed study when they must drop out of their programs, and return to programs as soon as the…

This study examined the impact of social and academic integration on college students' satisfaction and retention in the theoretical context of Tinto. A sample of 378 freshmen from a comprehensive state university responded to a survey. Variables examined included persistence, satisfaction, academic integration, social integration, academic…