The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of first-year undergraduates' (n = 5,368) use of academic library resources in their first year on their degree completion or continued enrollment after four years of study. Propensity score matching techniques were used to construct treatment (library users) and control (library nonusers) groups…

A key issue for admissions teams is to distinguish which students of those who apply are truly able and sufficiently committed to complete a degree. One signal of a student's ability to achieve college-level academic requirements is participation in high school acceleration programs such as Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate or…

Disparities exist among Latinos in educational attainment. These disparities are magnified when comparing their access, persistence, and degree attainment to their Caucasian and Asian American counterparts. The purpose of this quantitative study is to discover the impact of cultural competence among academic advising professionals as it relates to…

Retention and student graduation rates are a major concern for community colleges nationwide. As student dropout rates continue to climb and graduation figures languish, many studies have been conducted to investigate the causes of student attrition. Numerous reports have found faculty advising to be a contributing factor in student retention,…

Over 40% of undergraduates in the United States attend a community college; however, fewer than 50% complete a degree or certificate within 6 years. As a result, national and state leaders have endorsed completion agenda initiatives, including performance-based funding (PBF). Texas implemented a form of PBF for the 2014-2015 Academic Year (AY)…

While preparing students academically for vertical transfer to four-year colleges has traditionally been viewed as the major responsibility of the home institutions, there is a growing consensus that the receiving institutions play a critical role in facilitating the transfer process and in supporting students' academic success after transfer. The…

College graduation rates are a source of concern; many students fail to complete degree programs and therefore miss out on the socioeconomic benefits accruing to college graduates. Some have proposed that colleges be evaluated based on their graduation rates, with financial aid dollars directed away from poor performers. However, none of these…

The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching's Math Pathways seek to improve outcomes for community college students who take remedial math courses. The Pathways include two comprehensive instructional systems--Statway® and Quantaway® and are described in this report. They are designed to support students to achieve the necessary math…

The California Community Colleges serves more than 2.1 million students each year and is the largest system of higher education in the nation. The state's 113 community colleges are charged with providing workforce training, basic skills education and preparing students to transfer to four-year postsecondary institutions. Seventy-seven California…

The National Institute for Excellence in Teaching (NIET) is a national nonprofit that works with K-12 districts and teacher preparation programs to better prepare new teachers for the expectations they will face in classrooms. NIET also supports school leaders to build strong instructional skills across the faculty and to support educators in…

The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) collects institution-level data from postsecondary institutions in the United States (50 states and the District of Columbia) and other U.S. jurisdictions (see appendix A for a list of other U.S. jurisdictions). This "First Look" presents findings from the preliminary data of the…

This report contains ratings of effective practices used to improve student success, retention, and completion, based on a Ruffalo Noel Levitz (RNL) electronic poll of undergraduate officials at U.S. colleges and universities in June of 2017. The report includes: (1) effectiveness rankings for 28 general strategies and tactics, such as one-on-one…

Michael M. Crow became the 16th president of Arizona State University in July 2002, with the goal of transforming ASU into what he calls a "New American University"--an institution combining the highest levels of academic excellence, inclusiveness to a broad demographic, and maximum societal impact. His view included increasing graduate…

Wesley College secured a five-year National Science Foundation (NSF) S-STEM (scholarships in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) grant (1355554) to provide affordability and access to its robust STEM programs. With these funds, the college initiated a freshman to senior level, mixed-cohort, Cannon Scholar (CS) learning community…

This study focuses on quantitative long-term effects of Supplemental Instruction (SI) in terms of graduation and dropout rates. One of the main aims of SI is to introduce students to effective study strategies and techniques. If SI is introduced at an early stage for new students in higher education, it should therefore be expected that this…