While the Pell Grant covers a substantial proportion of college tuition for low-income students, it has covered only two full-time semesters per year and has not included any support for summer courses through most of its history. As research has shown that continuous enrollment throughout the year increases college persistence and completion, the…

Developmental mathematics, which is designed to prepare students for college-level mathematics courses, can be a barrier to students' success. In the United States, the majority of students placed into developmental mathematics courses fail to complete the developmental sequence. Alternative mathematics pathways offer some benefits when integrated…

In line with the national trend, Mississippi faces the same challenge that fewer students are completing college degrees. In response to the national call for more degrees, many states have implemented dual enrollment programs to try to decrease the transition anxiety between high school and college, which could possibly lead to more college…

Objective: This study examines whether Louisiana's performance-based funding (PBF) implementation in 2011 impacts various academic outcomes at community colleges, and whether the impact varies for institutions with higher proportions of underrepresented students. Method: Using institutional-level panel data between 2006 and 2016, I employ…

This Data Point examines the persistence and attainment of students who enrolled in postsecondary education for the first time in 2003-04, focusing on subbaccalaureate students (those seeking a certificate or associate's degree) and, among subbaccalaureate students, those who pursue occupational education. Their progress was tracked over 6 years.…

Nationally, community college graduation rates remain stubbornly low, despite strides made in access--and they are particularly so for low-income students, nontraditional students, and students who need to take developmental (remedial) courses. In 2014, three schools in Ohio--Cincinnati State Technical and Community College, Cuyahoga Community…

Producing sufficient numbers of graduates who are prepared for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) occupations has become a national priority in the United States. To attain this goal, some policymakers have targeted reducing STEM attrition in college, arguing that retaining more students in STEM fields in college is a…

This inquiry is an exploration of the educational trajectories of African American women community college students. We compare the persistence of African American women to African American men and to all women college students using the 1996/2001 Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Survey and the 1993/2003 Baccalaureate and Beyond…

Traditionally, modeling student retention has been done by deriving student success predictors and measuring the likelihood of success based on several background factors such as age, race, gender, and other pre-college variables, also known as the input-output model. Increasingly, however, researchers have used mediating factors of the student…

This study explored the impact of financial-aid on student-athletes' academic progression from freshmen to sophomore year in associates' degree programs in Oklahoma. Differences were found according to socioeconomic status (SES), gender, and race/ethnicity and between athlete and nonathlete students. (Contains 6 tables and 2 figures.)

To increase the rate at which adult basic skills students advance to and succeed in college-level occupational programs, the Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC) developed the Integrated Basic Education and Skills Training, or I-BEST. In the I-BEST model, a basic skills instructor and an occupational instructor team…

Graduation rates of the fall semester freshman classes that entered the Bloomington campus of Indiana University between 1980 and 1974 were studied. By examining the percentage of students completing a baccalaureate degree within four years of their matriculation, it was found that the graduation rate from the Bloomington campus significantly…

This study focused on the transfer and academic performance of applied associate degree recipients in Missouri. The author collected data on two-year college graduates who transferred to a Missouri public four-year college between fall 1996 and summer 1997 and graduated by spring 2000. The study sought to determine if there were any statistically…

Grade inflation has occurred in postsecondary institutions and has been accompanied by a concomitant rise in grade-point average. Nursing educators are expected to prepare competent future nurses. Because many nursing programs use grade-point average as admission, retention, and progression criteria, it is imperative that grades accurately reflect…

This report discusses the transfer rate of community college students with A.S. or A.A.S. degrees from vocational or "terminal" programs in Missouri. The study shows that during the 1995-1996 academic year, 6,171 students received an associate degree from a Missouri public two-year college. Of these, 3,169 (51%) earned the A.A. degree…