As the economy struggles to recover amidst ongoing uncertainty, adults across the country could benefit from earning a degree and opening the door to new careers. Colleges and universities recognize the importance--but also the challenge--of getting "some college no degree" (SCND) students back on track and supporting them, along with…

The prominence of discourse on postsecondary degree completion, student persistence, and retention has increased in the national dialogue. Heightened attention to college completion rates by the federal government and pressure to tie state funding to performance metrics associated with graduation rates are catalysts for the discussion.…

The primary objective of the concierge service at the University of Nevada, Reno is to keep students on track to graduate in four years. The Concierge is charged with helping students enroll in the classes they need, not necessarily want, to graduate. This one charge defines the operational criteria. The service is available to all students,…

Using the data from Achieving the Dream: Community Colleges Count, this issue of "Data Notes" is the second of a two-part series investigating the characteristics of late stop-outs--students who accumulate at least 30 credits within the first two years, only to stop out without completing credentials or transferring. The data show that male…

Measuring the progress of students toward completing their college education is an important gauge of how well California's postsecondary education systems are meeting the needs of students and the public. This report provides an assessment of persistence as a measure of student success at California's public universities and is one of a series of…

This report responds to Illinois State Board of Higher Education's policies on improving undergraduate education that called for cooperation among institutions of higher education in monitoring the academic progress, retention, and graduation of undergraduate students. The report examines the enrollment, transfer, and degree attainment patterns of…

A profile of graduation rates and time-to-degree was generated for undergraduates entering California State University in fall 1978 or fall 1979, as first-time freshmen (n=53,445) and community college transfer students (n=44,992). The profile analyzes: (1) the proportion of new students who ultimately graduate; (2) the distribution of degrees…

A study of degree completion rates, time taken to earn degrees, and final academic standing in two universities showed wide variation between faculty and academic department, between the universities, between males and females, and between direct entry and transfer students. Assessment of the impact of rising admissions standards is recommended.…

Focusing on student retention and time to degree completion, this study illustrates how institutional researchers may benefit from the power of predictive analyses associated with data-mining tools. The following are appended: (1) Predictors; and (2) Variable Definitions. (Contains 5 figures.)

This working paper is a staff paper prepared to elicit discussion of issues as they relate to degree completion and persistence in Indiana's public postsecondary education. This is based on a requirement from the Indiana General Assembly for the Commission of Higher Education to "develop a definition for and report biennially on" degree…

This report is one in a series examining performance measures adopted by the Commission as part of an accountability framework for higher education in California. All measures correspond to one of four goals: (1) Student Preparation for College; (2) Affordability and Access; (3) Student Success in Progressing through College; and (4) Public…

This study addressed the question of how much graduation rates would improve if new students were followed for 10 instead of four or six years from their date of first enrollment; it also compared enrollment and graduation patterns of new freshmen and new transfers to see if graduation rates were similar after 10 years. Participants were all…

This study, which is a companion to a study on 10-year enrollment and graduation patterns for new freshmen and transfers, sought to quantify how much more likely college students were to graduate if they were transfers, were enrolled continuously, were mostly full-time, and began their academic careers with good first-semester grade point averages…

More than three-fourths of students starting at four-year institutions earn a bachelor's degree or are still enrolled six years later. Of students who started at a public two-year institution, more than half earned some kind of degree or were still enrolled. At the same time, certain students are at particular risk of dropping out, and there are…

This study utilized data from the "NCES Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study (BPS 96/01)" to explore the 6-year persistence status of Family and Consumer Sciences (FCS) students seeking the bachelor's degree at four-year institutions irrespective of whether they had remained at their initial institution, transferred, temporarily…