University is a critical timepoint for students in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) career pathway. Gender differences in the persistence of STEM students have been established, with female students more at risk for attrition from this career pathway. While the persistence of undergraduate STEM students has been a focus…

A significant number of university students are leaving their institutions before completing their degrees. The present research project applied embeddedness theory, from organizational research, to understand student retention in a tertiary student population, and develop a quantitative instrument that measured university student embeddedness. In…

Research has shown that achieving gender equality in science goes beyond equal gender ratios in the classroom. Female students in science disciplines with relatively higher female participation rates (e.g. biology and chemistry) still experience similar gender issues as students in male-dominated science disciplines (e.g. physics and mathematics).…

The literature suggests that student attrition at the university level has been of growing concern in many countries. Student attrition has a number of implications for universities, chief amongst them are losses to revenue and investment in higher education. While many studies have examined causes for attrition from an institutional perspective,…

This paper reports on research that evaluates the potential of assessment to promote students' engagement with their first-year social work education; particularly their sense of connection with other students in ways that may contribute to student persistence in the initial stages of their studies. It presents the findings obtained from a…

Good practice notes offer practical advice and examples of good practice to guide operations in regard to specific, higher education issues. The good practice notes are intended to support and promote the quality assurance approaches of providers. This Good Practice Note identifies examples of good practice in Australian higher education providers…

This article reflects on evidence drawn from an evaluation of the impact of a scholarship programme for students from disadvantaged backgrounds at Macquarie University, Sydney. In addition to evidence of improved retention rates, the article suggests that qualitative data derived from a number of interviews with scholarship recipients highlight…

Identities extend standard models that explain student motivations to complete courses at technical college. A differential hypothesis was that profiles of identities (individuality, belonging and place) explain the self-concepts and task values that contribute to participation, considering demographic factors (age, gender, location, paid work).…