Implementing effective student retention strategies is important for all institutions of higher education. This is especially true for smaller, private colleges as resources for higher education are stretched and the dependence on tuition revenue to maintain fiscal viability increases. This longitudinal study focuses on the utilization of retention strategies at Council for Christian Colleges and Universities member institutions. The results indicate that institutional selectivity and the utilization of a student retention program over a long period, as opposed to the utilization of any individual student retention strategy in particular, positively correlate with student retention to graduation. Conducting an annual evaluation of the effectiveness of enrollment management also showed statistically significant results. Implications for student retention at private colleges are discussed and considerations for future research are also highlighted. (Contains 4 tables.)