"Doctorate Education in Canada: Findings from the Survey of Earned Doctorates, 2005/2006" is the third paper in a series of reports written by the Learning Policy Directorate of Human Resources and Social Development Canada (HRSDC) and the Centre for Education Statistics of Statistics Canada. Each report presents an overview of doctoral…

This article describes the results of a report released last week by the Council of Graduate Schools. The report, "Ph.D. Completion and Attrition: Analysis of Baseline Demographic Data From the Ph.D. Completion Project," is based on data from 24 universities in the United States and Canada. According to this report, women and members of…

Several years ago, leaders at Vanguard-Sentinel Career Centers, located in northwestern Ohio, began looking at the issue of student motivation. They were concerned that some students, even in their career-based programs, were falling through the cracks. For a variety of reasons, these students were not successful in the traditional high school…

Students who attend college part time are at a disadvantage relative to their full-time peers, according to a report released in June by the National Center for Education Statistics, an arm of the U.S. Department of Education. The report analyzes data from a 2004 national postsecondary student-aid study to create a profile of part-time…

A significant number of students transfer from one college to another each year, and historically this has created challenges for students striving to attain their higher education goals. The purpose of this study was to inform state articulation policy by collecting qualitative data to characterize issues that affect students as they transfer…

The NEAIR (North East Association for Institutional Research) 2011 Conference Proceedings is a compilation of papers presented at the Boston, Massachusetts conference. Papers in this document include: (1) Are Students Dropping Out or Dragging Out the College Experience? The Roles of Socioeconomic Status and Academic Background (Leslie S. Stratton…

Background: Research reveals that the relationship between a student and a supervisor is so crucial that students cannot afford to leave it to chance. It must be managed. Phillips and Pugh (2000, p. 193) maintains that if students are to do this well, they must understand what their supervisors expect of them. Once they have this "inside…

The elapsed time taken to earn a Ph.D. in economics is analyzed with data from 620 (of about 950) 1996-1997 Ph.D.s. The median is 5.3 years. A duration model indicates that those students at several of the most highly regarded programs, those supported by no-work fellowships, and those holding a prior master's degree finish faster than others.…

A study of the time it took 618 students to earn Ph.D.s in economics found that those with fellowships or prior master's degrees finished faster. Those who took jobs before completion and women with children took longer. No differences appeared in relation to marital status, gender, age, and program size. (Author/SK)

Federal higher education policy has shifted over the past few decades from grants to loans as the primary means for providing access to postsecondary education for low- and moderate-income families. With this shift, policy makers have begun tracking student loan default rates as a key indicator of the efficacy of student loan programs. This effort…

Explores the relationships among the number of credits earned in the first and subsequent years of enrollment, the pace at which credits are earned, and bachelor's degree attainment. (Author)

The time taken for students to complete their degrees is a persistent concern. A bachelor's degree is often thought of as being a four-year program, but many students take well over four years to graduate. Slow progress toward graduation is costly to students, who often have to take out loans for tuition and living costs. In addition, prolonged…

As the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) begins development of a new six-year strategic plan for higher education, this report reviews progress made towards the goals of the 2002 plan, each to be accomplished by 2010: (1) Accommodate at least 61,000 additional students; (2) Increase Virginia's national standing in sponsored…

In this study, the authors used multivariate statistical analysis to examine the impact of cost on the likelihood that a person will both enroll in and complete a Master of Business Administration (MBA) program. They considered both the "explicit" cost of paying tuition and the "implicit" cost, or opportunity cost, of earnings foregone while in…

The McKnight Doctoral Fellowship Program (MDFP) in Florida addresses the issue of under-representation of African American doctorates by adopting a "seamless" approach in supporting African-Americans pursuing a doctoral degree and beyond. The success of the MDFP suggests a need to reconsider graduate support for minority students that…