Student evaluations of teaching (SETs) are widely used to measure teaching quality in higher education and compare it across different courses, teachers, departments and institutions. Indeed, SETs are of increasing importance for teacher promotion decisions, student course selection, as well as for auditing practices demonstrating institutional…

Quantitative meta-analysis is a very useful, yet underutilized, technique for synthesizing research findings in higher education. Meta-analytic inquiry can be more challenging in higher education than in other fields of study as a result of (a) concerns about the use of regression coefficients as a metric for comparing the magnitude of effects…

Based upon a national longitudinal dataset of 14,527 college students generated by the UCLA Spirituality in Higher Education Project, this study used structural equation modeling to test the applicability of a model of ecumenical worldview development for students of diverse genders, races, and worldviews. The model suggests that challenging…

Examines structural features of grade point averages (GPAs) and offers examples showing that GPAs cannot consistently determine class rank since class rank is sometimes permuted with arbitrary change of scale. Notes relativistic efforts to resolve inconsistencies are insufficient. Discusses the function of GPAs as predictors of academic…

A meta-analytic method synthesized results of 108 studies of the relationship between college grades and various criteria of adult achievement or success. Results showed little correlation, although effects were larger for military settings and studies before 1950. The predictive value of grades is questioned. (MSE)

A study demonstrated the use of logistic regression in conjunction with a new structural equations modeling technique for a university attrition study. The results and their methodological implications are discussed. (MSE)

This article suggests that the choice by institutional researchers to use qualitative or quantitative research is often dictated by time, money, resources, and staff and not necessarily with an understanding of the underlying philosophical assumptions structuring beliefs about methodology, knowledge, and reality. These underlying assumptions are…

A study of the use of logit analysis for examining an institution's retention of graduate students determined that when the independent variables are categorical and the dependent variables are dichotomous, logit analysis is more appropriate than discriminant analysis or multiple regression. (MSE)

The demographic technique of direct standardization was used to assess the selectivity of selective private colleges. Results showed selectivity rankings varied greatly according to whether crude or adjusted acceptance rates were used. Adjusted rates reduced comparison problems for colleges with variable-quality applicant pools. (MSE)

This study explored how logit, probit, and more traditional linear regression techniques compare in predicting college student retention, using data provided by registrars from a national sample of colleges and universities. Results showed little practical difference among the techniques, despite theoretical advantages offered by the first two.…

Simple comparisons of average salaries for junior and senior faculty can not indicate whether the differential is declining, because there is no standard for comparison. A simple five-step regression analysis procedure is proposed to investigate salary compression. Analysis of 1990-91 faculty salary data for the University of Minnesota indicates…

The relationship between academic achievement and the financial success of baccalaureate recipients in the workplace is the focal point of an investigation that covers the first 3 years following graduation. Employment activity and quarterly earnings of university baccalaureate recipients were tracked in a comprehensive study that merged state…

Discriminant functional analysis was used to compare structural variables of department size, institution type, and highest degree awarded with academic discipline to determine which accounts for more variance in biology and English department chairpersons' responses to questions concerning their influence. Generally, structural variables…

The development, characteristics, statistical findings, and utility of a faculty salary model used for three years in a diversified higher education system are reported. The model was developed in response to needs to deal with salary equity litigation, make interinstitutional salary comparisons, and better understand factors determining salaries.…

A study using a path-analytic model compared first-year college students enrolled in remedial-type mathematics courses with counterparts enrolled in nonremedial coursework. Results revealed that students enrolled in nonremedial courses entered the institution with many advantages over those enrolled in remedial mathematics. Background variables…