Wikipedia

University student retention

For other uses, see Persistence.

University student retention, sometimes referred to as persistence, is a process to improve student graduation rates and decrease a loss of tuition revenue via university programs.[1]

In United States

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Transfer rates

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Transfer rates are very high in the United States with 60% of all bachelor's degrees being awarded to students that began their college at another institution.[2] Some transfers are planned; many community colleges have articulation agreements with four-year colleges. Other university systems are college-preparatory schools, which offer the first two years of the degree at a local campus with transfer into the flagship university in the junior year.

Factors affecting persistence

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Grades

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Grades earned in a student's first semester are a strong predictor of student persistence. In a Budny longitudinal study of Purdue engineering students, it was shown that first semester GPA was a better predictor of retention than SAT scores. In the study, first semester engineering students who earn an A grade in Precalculus have the same persistence after 6 semesters as students whose first semester mathematics course was Calculus I and who earned a B, and these levels of persistence are also equivalent to students whose first semester course was Calculus II, and who earned a grade of C.[3] A second study on the role of grades in first semester coursework supports the importance of first semester GPA, showing that the grade earned in English and mathematics courses are a strong predictor of persistence after one year, with the strongest predictor of returning corresponding to earning a grade of "A" in English, and the next strongest predictors corresponding to earning a "B" in English, or an "A" or "B" in mathematics. The level of course taken (for example, whether Calculus I or Precalculus) is less of a predictor of persistence at university than the grade earned in the mathematics class taken.[4] This consideration is important for students who might, for example, have earned a passing AP Calculus AB score of "3" (as opposed to a higher score). For STEM majors that rely on Calculus I as a prerequisite, (e.g. engineering, physics and chemistry majors), these students with an AP AB score of "3" might consider retaking Calculus I their first semester at university and earning a high grade while also solidifying their calculus knowledge, and then taking Calculus II in their second semester.

Cost of tuition

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The economy also has a noticeable effect on retention rates. The cost of public and private institutions in the 1999–2000 school year, which includes tuition and on campus housing, averaged $7,302 and $20,277, respectively. After adjusting for inflation, this represented a 22% cost increase at public institutions and a 27% increase at private institutions for the 10-year period between the 1989–1990 and 1999–2000 academic years.[5]

According to the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education, tuition at a 4-year college represented 12% of the total income for families that fell into the lowest income bracket in 1980, and rose drastically to encompass 25% of their income by 2000.[6] This has created an influx of part-time students and working students. In the undergraduate population, 50% of students describe themselves as working primarily to pay for their education at an average of 25 hours per week.[7] This leaves working-class students little time to become involved on campus and actively participate in university life.[8] According to the U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Educational Statistics, only 50% of those who enter higher education actually earn a bachelor's degree.[9]

Depending on the university, there are resources in order to help those with financial issues, such as financial aid.

Addressing student retention

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Universities have several programs for students to enjoy campus life and to help them get engage on campus. This includes campus funded tutoring, freshman seminar courses, and student clubs.[10]

Private corporations are looking into the business of student retention as a potential new field of revenue. This has led to problematic outsourcing strategies, such as the case of the University of Texas' system $10 million investment into the private company Myedu.[11] Data on the amount of corporate lobbying addressed to the Board of Regents of State Universities is not available.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Student Persistence vs Student Retention: What Is The Difference?". www.suitable.co. Retrieved 2023-02-12.
  2. ^ "2006 Retention/Completion Summary Tables" (PDF). 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 September 2006.
  3. ^ Budny, D., LeBold, W., Bjedov, G. (1998). Assessment of the Impact of Freshmen Engineering Courses. Journal of Engineering Education, 87(4):405-411.
  4. ^ Callahan, J.; Belcheir, M (2017), "Testing Our Assumptions", Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory \& Practice, 19: 161–175, doi:10.1177/1521025115611620
  5. ^ Snyder, T., & Hoffman, C. (2001). Digest of education statistics, 2000 (National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, Office of EducationalResearch and Improvement Publication No. NCES 2001034). Washington DC: U.S.Government Printing Office.
  6. ^ National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education. (2002). Losing ground: A national status report on the affordability of American higher education. San Jose, CA. Print.
  7. ^ Riggert, Steven C., Mike Boyle, Joseph M. Petrosko, Daniel Ash, and Carolyn Rude- Parkins. Student Employment and Higher Education: Empiricism and Contradiction. Vol. 76, No. 1. American Educational Research Association, 2006. Print.
  8. ^ Rubin, M. (2012), "Social class differences in social integration among students in higher education: A meta-analysis and recommendations for future research", Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, 5: 22–38, doi:10.1037/a0026162, hdl:1959.13/930870
  9. ^ Seidman, Alan. College student retention: formula for student success. Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers, 2005. Print.
  10. ^ Astin, Alexander W.. Achieving educational excellence. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass,1985. Print.
  11. ^ Steve Kolowich (2 November 2011). "UT system's $10 million investment in MyEdu sparks controversy". Inside Higher Ed.
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