Completing a program of study and earning a credential is a mark of student perseverance and success. Student completion rates can tell us how well colleges and universities support students in completing an educational program. A research study by the US Department of Education reported students who completed non-degree certificate programs had…

This pilot study aimed to evaluate a pre-educational resource program (PREP) for transfer nursing students to determine its impact on persistence and preparedness. Drexel University (DU) College of Nursing and Health Professions offers a Bachelor of Science in Nursing for traditional and transfer students. Evidence demonstrates a gap in the pass…

The purpose of this qualitative evaluation was to understand how the Ascent program, a bridge initiative at Plymouth State University, programmatically addressed institutional concerns regarding student retention and persistence during its three-year pilot phase, according to the perceptions of past participants, faculty, and administrators. The…

Online learning continues be the largest growth sector in higher education (IPEDS, 2019), however, students enrolled in fully online programs are retained at a lower rate than students enrolled in traditional face to face programs. The purpose of this quantitative correlational study is to determine if online students who participate in an online…

Every year 115,000 veterans transition out of the military and enter an institution of higher education as student veterans. These student veterans enter academia with specific challenges to success that traditional non-veteran students do not experience. The problem addressed by this study was the underutilization and lack of transition services…

A growing number of single mothers are seeking entry to higher education via enabling programs; however, these students face unique struggles to make their dream a reality. There is some research on the challenges faced by student-mothers in higher education; however, research specifically on single mothers in enabling education is limited. This…

Personal characteristics contributing to success in higher education has become an important area of focus in recent years. Duckworth's (2007) grit framework shows positive correlations with a range of academic outcomes. This article explores the characteristics of grit in a study of female students who identified as mothers during their enrolment…

The American Talent Initiative's Student Success Research Grant Program supported research studies aimed at deepening our understanding of the institutional practices and strategies that can improve student success at high-graduation-rate institutions. The findings will offer actionable recommendations for supporting lower-income students, while…

This study examined the effect of accessing supports available to the general student body and disability-related supports on college perseverance for students with disabilities. This secondary analysis of a nationally-representative longitudinal dataset, the National Longitudinal Transition Study-2, included a sample of approximately 2,330…

The transition from school to university can prove problematic for a number of academic and social reasons and first-year attrition rates are high. Research suggests that first-year students need help adjusting to a new phase of learning in a larger community of practice and that a student's decision to leave represents a negative combination of…

Developmental courses help academically underprepared students to succeed in college. Classroom learning community programs aid intellectual growth through academic and social support. The current study examined whether developmental students in classroom learning communities differed with respect to college GPA and retention from their peers not…

This book helps educational leaders provide support for students who face significant barriers to college access, success, and retention. The authors offer research-based, practical guidance to allow readers to evaluate these issues within their local context, create and implement a plan of action, and sustain those efforts over time. Vignettes…

The college years are meant to be transformative for traditional-aged students who come into university as adolescents and leave as emerging adults. Pedagogy can play an active role in moving students through this transition by providing "ritual" occasions for students to practice their emerging identities. Public Sphere Pedagogy…

Higher education literature advises that college students who have autism spectrum disorders overwhelmingly attend community colleges. However the persistence and retention of college students who have autism spectrum disorders is not well documented. Absent among the existing literature are first-person narratives of college students who have…

The purpose of this report is to provide comprehensive longitudinal outcome data, disaggregated for student and school subgroups, on the six-year college enrollment and completion experiences of the Boston Public Schools (BPS) Class of 2011. As high school and college students, the BPS Class of 2011 experienced the Getting Ready, Getting In, and…