After many years of focusing on providing black students with access to postsecondary education, attention is being refocused on retaining students through graduation. Critics say that enrollment rates, not commitment, dictate retention efforts and that such programs are isolated, not institutionwide efforts. Some institutions are sharing dropout…

A study investigated the relationship of financial aid to persistence/academic performance of 42 medical student recipients of financial aid. Results indicate receipt of aid did not correlate significantly with graduation rate or class rank. Financial aid provided capable students, who could otherwise not afford it, opportunity to attend medical…

Variables related to special education teacher attrition were examined by qualitative interviews with 14 current and 10 former special education teachers. Analysis indicated that stayers were more committed to teaching students with disabilities, had a higher sense of efficacy, felt more prepared by their preservice and initial teaching…

Interviews with 36 adult part-time students at Warwick and Coventry Universities showed that 13 alternate student roles with other life roles and 23 attempt to combine roles and responsibilities. All combiners were employed full or part time; all but one of the alternators were unemployed or retired. (SK)

Comparison of 37 health occupations and 80 trade and industrial teachers' Myers Briggs types to those of a population of 1,438 other teachers indicated a high number of Sensing types teaching vocational subjects. Intuitive types left teaching at higher rates than Sensing types; Intuitive-Thinking types were even more likely to leave. (SK)

Using a longitudinal study, identified factors related to persistence and non-persistence in science, math, and technology careers for students--especially women. Women's persistence correlated with the number of elective high school science courses taken; women with higher career commitment were more likely to have switched aspirations to another…

The 1994 Kurt Hahn Award recipient and president of the American Youth Foundation discusses essential elements for personal and systemic change, including creativity (which provides energy and direction), character (which defines who we are), and commitment (which requires accountability), all of which enable individuals and organizations to…

This article describes a summer mathematics enrichment program for gifted junior high students. Concerns in the areas of attrition, student motivation, student selection, and developmental influences on student persistence are raised, and research directions are outlined. (DB)

This article describes a book by William Bowen and Neil Rudenstine titled "In Pursuit of the Ph.D.," which analyzes Ph.D. completion rates and time-to-degree. The book recommends improvements in program design and management, better-focused financial aid, and more structure.(DB)

Interviews with 20 undergraduate nursing students cited such external problems as excessive academic load, large class size, faculty inattentiveness, racial tensions, dorm/roommate problems, parking, and commuting time and such internal problems as poor study habits, loneliness, homesickness, family conflicts, and difficulty with peer…

Among 166 American Indian first-year college students studied for 6 years, only 16% graduated during the period. Typical college entrance criteria did not necessarily predict persistence. Interviews with 11 Navajo students examined going-home behavior, early educational intentions, and acculturation, and suggested culturally distinct…

Analysis of data on 82 agricultural and home economics transfer students from community colleges and 103 regular undergraduates revealed transfer students had lower academic aptitude; ag majors had higher ACT composite scores than home ec majors; transfers' cumulative quality point averages were equal to those earned by nontransfers; and transfers…

A study of 71 individuals with specific learning disabilities and moderate to high vocational success revealed commonalities in the ways they were able to achieve, including a strong desire for success, goal orientation, ability to interpret the disability experience, persistence, selection of an appropriate work environment, learned creativity,…

Two theories concerning students' decisions to leave college are compared, and the convergence and discriminant validity of the two theories are examined empirically. The extent to which the theories could be merged to help researchers understand the role of institutional and noninstitutional variables in student persistence is discussed. (MSE)

A study of 1,012 college freshmen admitted through a developmental studies program and offered employment through a highly structured program of up to 8 work hours/week found those taking maximum advantage of the work opportunity had higher achievement and retention rates than others. Differences by race and gender, and student perceptions, are…