This handbook for state and local education agencies is intended as a reference to assist in initiating and/or improving follow-up systems or studies of former vocational students classified as special populations. The handbook is a complement to Evaluation Handbook: Guidelines and Practices for Follow-Up Studies of Former Vocational Students,…

In response to declines in enrollment and average daily attendance since 1975, Ohlone College conducted a study of student attrition which involved: (1) a telephone survey of the 2,593 students who enrolled in Fall 1979 and dropped out or withdrew from classes before the end of the quarter; (2) a mailed survey of the 15 members of the California…

This second phase of a study conducted by the National League for Nursing determined the types of applicants to schools of nursing, their manner of applying, the programs to which they applied, and the considerations that influenced their choices. It also dealt with alternative paths taken by rejected applicants, focusing on those who made…

The validity of seven criteria utilized in conjunction with personal interviews and School and College Ability Test scores in the selection of applicants for admission to four Allied Health programs was investigated. The independent predictor variables studied were high school grade point average (GPA), the number of high school natural science…

Over one-third of high school students in Canada are dropping out of school. However, the advent of multimedia computer technology has increased the potential of career interventions, particularly for at-risk youth. This digest describes such a program entitled Knowledge for Youth About Careers (KYAC). KYAC is based on attribution change theory…

This study analyzed institutional factors that significantly affect cohort default rates at historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and assessed the potential for reducing these rates. It has been hypothesized that the HBCUs most successful in lowering student cohort default rates are those that have also succeeded in increasing…

The study examines the population of long-term students of English as a second language (ESL), those who are enrolled in ESL programs for four to eight years but have not mastered the cognitive and academic skills in English to compete at grade level, in one New York City (New York) high school, and the efforts being made to address this…

A survey concerning 2,449 graduate medical students who withdrew and 887 who took extended leave from residencies in the 1991-92 year investigated the reasons for leaving and patterns among residency years, specialties, men and women, and ethnic groups. Comparisons were also made with osteopathic, foreign, and Canadian programs. (MSE)

To determine factors affecting new students in their first semester, a study was conducted at Diablo Valley College, in California, to draw a profile and track 4,251 students who applied or were identified as new in fall 1992. Percentage distributions were calculated for the sample and for the sub-groups who applied only, completed testing only,…

This book provides an overview of a 4-year longitudinal study of senior secondary schooling in the government high schools of New South Wales, Australia. The study followed the progress from year 9 to year 12 of 3,000 students from 22 government secondary schools in 2 metropolitan and 2 nonmetropolitan regions. The book is divided into 10…

This research brief reviews and analyzes national data on college going, persistence, and graduation. It compares characteristics of students who enter college immediately after high school graduation with other types of postsecondary entrants, considers traditional versus nontraditional paths of college going, and examines college persisters and…

This paper explores the practical implications of the distributional perspective on dropping out of school--a perspective that says that the concentration of student exodus from certain schools may reflect the impact of contextual or organizational factors as opposed to those that operate simply at the individual level. Based on data from the…

In 1991, a study was conducted of semester-to-semester persistence patterns at Rancho Santiago College (RSC). The study involved tracking the attendance patterns of all RSC students entering as new students in fall 1983 and each subsequent fall until 1990; and comparing the persistence rates of matriculated and non-matriculated students in the…

During spring 1991, a study was conducted at San Diego City College (SDCC) in California to explore the various factors which motivate students to drop out, propose remediation strategies based on the research findings, and suggest further studies to identify and analyze problem areas more explicitly. To examine students' reasons for dropping out,…

Presenting data on student persistence at Rancho Santiago College (RSC), in California, through fall 1993, this three-part report presents longitudinal semester-to-semester persistence rates for 1983-1993; course completion rates, including grade and withdrawal distributions for every course and department for fall 1993; and data on associate…