The main aim of this study was to gain a better understanding of why students abandon their studies, or perform less well than expected given their high school grades, and to develop predictive models that can help identify those students most at-risk at the time they enter college. This will allow teachers and those responsible for student…

In November 1994, a study was conducted at Miami-Dade Community College (M-DCC), in Florida, to determine outcomes after 1 year for first-time-in-college students who began in fall 1992. Specifically, the study sought to determine the percent of first-time students continuing enrollment at MDCC beyond their first year, the effect of student…

In 1976, a study determined that student retention had increased markedly following Barstow College's transition from a semester to a quarter system. In 1979, another study was conducted to determine: (1) the accuracy of the 1976 figures; (2) the effect of the shortness of the time period considered in the 1976 study on its reliability; (3) the…

In 1980, a study was conducted to determine the student dropout rate at the University of South Carolina at Lancaster and the characteristics of typical dropout students. Data were obtained for 99% of the 736 students enrolled during fall 1980 with respect to variables including race, sex, marital status, age, major, day/evening schedule,…

This report provides data on public and private high school graduates and dropouts in Kentucky. The introduction contains tables and graphs comparing the career directions (attending college or trade school, military, working, at home, unemployed, deceased, homemakers, and unknown) of Kentucky graduates in 1968 and 1983 and enrollment patterns…

A study was conducted at William Rainey Harper College (WRHC) to develop a profile of students who withdrew from courses between summer 1992 and spring 1994. Between 1992 and 1994, 13.7% of the 175,000 course enrollments resulted in official withdrawals, representing a 0.4% decrease in withdrawals from the 1990-1992 cohort. An analysis of these…

A study was conducted at William Rainey Harper College (WRHC) in Illinois to develop a profile of students who withdrew from courses between summer 1990 and spring 1992. For the 2-year period studied, each degree credit student who officially withdrew from a course was asked to complete a survey form, indicating withdrawal status, whether a…

A study was conducted at William Rainey Harper College (WRHC) to develop a profile of students who withdrew from courses between 1988 and 1990 and to compare this profile with the results of a 1986-88 withdrawal study. For the 2-year period studied, each degree credit student who officially withdrew from a course was asked to complete a survey…

Each year, in order to determine the factors that influence student attrition, Vancouver Community College (VCC) selectively surveys former students who dropped out (discontinuants) of occupational programs on VCC's three main campuses. Former students were surveyed regarding their personal characteristics, main goals for coming to VCC, activities…

A two-phase study examined the incidence and nature of dropout and progression from basic skills programs in England and Wales. During the first (retrospective) phase, data about 1,920 students' attendance/dropout patterns and reasons' for finishing/leaving their basic skills programs were obtained from 82 tutors (of more than 300 contacted) in 8…

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,…

This report is the sixth in a series of annual reports identifying the number of students who drop out of Nevada schools during the course one school year, in this case, the 1993-94 school year. Data were derived from school records, and information from every public school with grades 7 through 12 included. Some 5,950 individuals dropped out of…

The third in a series of four monographs, this study focuses on Black engineering students at Purdue University who persisted, withdrew, or transferred. A survey of the students was conducted to determine factors that influence retention and attrition of Black American students in engineering. A comparison of the pre-college and college…

Text and accompanying data tables in this report compare Hagerstown Junior College (HJC) with the Maryland community colleges as a whole with regard to the findings of three statewide follow-up studies: a survey (conducted in Spring, 1978) of first-time students who entered the colleges in Fall, 1974; a survey (conducted in Spring, 1980) of…