Estimates from a hazard model of college student departure for 3,975 students simulated how financial aid changes affect withdrawal decisions. Changing loans to scholarships has a large impact and front-loading aid (giving gift aid for the first 2 years) a modest impact on retention. Financial aid may represent more to students than its dollar…

According to analysis of the readability of textbooks used in 12 "common body of knowledge" courses in business administration, the higher the readability level, the lower the grade averages, fewer As, and the higher the number of withdrawals from the course. Although readability may not be the only influence, it is an important…

Investigates how Tinto's model of retention can be applied to two-year institutions. Explores academic and social integration and their effects on student withdrawal rates as well as the effect of background skills on withdrawal rates. Finds no correlation between academic and social integration and withdrawal rates, but poorer Computer Placement…

Interviews with 133 Australian vocational students from non-English-speaking backgrounds found that substandard English skill was the greatest hindrance to learning, despite prior educational level. They had great difficulty understanding and communicating with teachers. Clearer course materials and instructions and ongoing English language…

A problem-based methodology was used to explore why three students withdrew from a transition to postsecondary education program. The method treats dropout as students' solution to a problem and investigates their problem-solving processes, beliefs, motivations, and contextual conditions. For two students, withdrawal was a habitual response to…

This report to the leaders of the minority and majority parties of the Illinois state legislature provides data on the number of students with disabilities who are estimated to exit the Illinois public school system after the 1996-97 school year. The data were prepared by averaging the information provided by districts regarding students who were…

Although few students terminate their pursuit of a doctorate during the course-work phase of their program, many doctoral students drop out around the time that they successfully complete planned courses, a period known as "all but dissertation" (ABD). An examination of how professional educators who added a doctoral program to their…

This document presents research findings for the second task in the Appalachian Educational Laboratory's Lifelong Learning Program which addresses the adult vocational development process-managing the learning process. Section I presents data collection procedures and demographic information on the target group of adults at two community colleges.…

This paper proposes a longitudinal study of Eastern Massachusetts secondary students from two culturally diverse locations beginning in the fall of 1986 and ending with their high school graduations in 1991 and 1992. After discussing dropout prevention strategies, the paper offers the following justification for the study: By following these…

In order to determine whether there was a significant correlation between a student's academic standing in a course and the time when the student withdrew from the course, grades received by students in 14 high withdrawal-rate courses taught by five community college instructors were reviewed. For the purposes of the study, withdrawal was defined…

THE PROBLEMS OF COLLEGE STUDENTS AND ADMINISTRATIONS WERE STUDIED IN THE AREAS OF FINANCIAL NEEDS, ATTITUDES, FUTURE PLANS, REASONS FOR WITHDRAWAL, REASONS FOR DECLINING ADMISSION, INTERRELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN PROBLEMS, AND SPECIFIC PROBLEMS OF A LARGE UNIVERSITY. A COLLEGE POPULATION WAS DIVIDED INTO THREE GROUPS--A PURPOSIVE SAMPLE OF THE ACTIVE…

The relationship between freshmen college persistence and self-report variables and objective academic indices is investigated. Follow-up data on persistence or non-persistence was gathered one and one-half years later, allowing one semester for attrition. Results indicate male non-persisters came from relatively low socioeconomic status families…

This study was conducted by Macomb County Community College to determine the reasons that their students withdrew from classes. Questionnaires were sent to 3,568 students who had dropped a total of 6,081 courses. The 1,434 responding students (40.19%) answered questions about the 2,190 courses they had dropped, and gave their reasons for doing so.…

This report analyzes departmental variations in time to degree and attrition in Ph.D. programs at Berkeley. An alternative hypothesis, the Ph.D. production function, is examined by cross-section econometric analysis of 28 departments. The inputs included in the production function were student variables--quality and percent males; faculty…

Describes a study that assessed the contribution of schooling to cognitive development by comparing the cognitive development for high school graduates and dropouts over a two-year period. Reports that the cognitive skills of students who stay in school improve more than those of dropouts and that dropping out harms disadvantaged students most.…