This study models graduation rates at 4-year broad access institutions (BAIs). We examine the student body, structural-demographic, and financial characteristics that best predict 6-year graduation rates across two time periods (2008-2009 and 2014-2015). A Bayesian model averaging approach is utilized to account for uncertainty in variable…

Students who delay immediate postsecondary enrollment may forego individual benefits, or represent misplaced resources for higher education institutions by not persisting once enrolled. Understanding the various pathways of diverse students is especially important in states that are experiencing a major demographic shift. Using a multi-agency…

Recent research indicates that certain students are at risk of lower levels of academic performance in online settings when compared to peers who study only in the classroom. Community college students have been a population of particular concern. In this paper, we hypothesize that online course load and institutional quality may impact outcomes…

Why do men in the United States today complete less schooling than women? One reason may be gender differences in early self-regulation and prosocial behaviors. Scholars have found that boys' early behavioral disadvantage predicts their lower average academic achievement during elementary school. In this study, I examine longer-term effects: Do…

There has been a steady increase in college enrollment rates in recent decades, which has not been accompanied by a corresponding increase in graduation rates. If this discrepancy is partly due to insufficient effort exerted by students, policies that aim at rewarding effort explicitly may succeed in increasing graduation rates. A unique and rich…

This year's study is the 35th in a series of annual reports on trends in dropout and attrition rates in Texas public schools. The 2019-20 study builds on a series of studies by the Intercultural Development Research Association (IDRA) that track the number and percent of students in Texas who are lost from public school enrollment prior to…

The current study examined whether it is possible to increase college students' intention to earn a four-year degree with the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). Three research questions were examined: (1) Can the TPB predict traditional undergraduates' graduation intention? (2) Does graduation intention differ by traditional students' year of…

Increased federal attention to student completion metrics and uncertain financial forecasts have heightened the tenor of student retention conversations. Improved institutional retention rates will lead to higher completion rates and relieve some funding concerns. To accomplish these improvements, institutions have invested in analytics to better…

We investigate the efficacy and equity of college admissions criteria by estimating the effect of multiple measures of college readiness on college performance in the context of race-blind automatic admissions policies. We take advantage of a unique institutional feature of the Texas higher education system to control for selection into…

Online course delivery continues to grow as a viable means of providing increased educational access to more students, but low student retention rates remain a major challenge. In this study, key institutional characteristics that influence student retention in postsecondary education are analyzed. These are student-faculty ratio, graduation rate,…

For many underrepresented minority students, the path to the baccalaureate degree begins with initial enrollment at a community college. Unfortunately, only a small percentage of students interested in transferring actually do transfer to a 4-year institution. Of these transfers, few graduate with a baccalaureate degree within 6 years of initial…

The minority-serving institution (MSI) sector has grown considerably since the 1980s, yet we have less empirical information about what currently influences students to enroll in and complete college at these institutions in comparison to their non-MSI counterparts. We evaluate student postsecondary outcomes by race and ethnicity in Texas's large…

This study gathered, analyzed, and compared perspectives of students who were honors-eligible but never began the program, students who began in honors and discontinued their enrollment, and those who were persisting in honors. Broadly speaking (and not surprisingly), the responses of students persisting in honors reflected the most positive…

The main controversy as a result of the commercialisation of international education markets is that international students especially those from China are unable to perform as well as UK students in UK universities. So far, research has yet to identify the influence of placements on the academic performance of Chinese students from entry to…

Each year, more districts implement early warning systems (EWS). These EWS predict negative student outcomes, such as dropping out, before they occur. Predictions are then used to match at-risk students to appropriate supports and interventions. Research suggests that these systems are useful in ensuring educators respond to student needs early,…