A causal model of academic factors affecting undergraduate student persistence at a large, urban, commuter university was tested. The effects of academic variables on persistence from fall to spring semester were also assessed for transfer and native students. The model accounted for 49% of the total variance in persistence, while separate models…

A study was conducted at Miami-Dade Community College to determine whether a student's choice of first-term courses related to subsequent retention. The database used for the study was the Basic Skills Validity Studies file, which contains records on all first-time-in-college students tested during the fall 1980-81 term, including information on…

A tracking model was developed at Rancho Santiago College utilizing enrollment and student statistics to identify first-time students who entered the college in fall 1983 and to track them over the following years. Statistics on 6,151 new students entering in fall 1983 indicated: (1) only 45% of the students who entered in fall 1983 were enrolled…

Retention of college students in a special developmental program in the School of General Studies at Purdue University, Calumet (Indiana), was studied. Data were gathered from fall 1981 through spring 1984 on 245 students who completed developmental studies program requirements (24 hours) and transferred to a degree-granting school. Success was…

A study was conducted at William Rainey Harper College (WRHC) to develop a profile of students who withdrew from courses between 1982 and 1986 and to compare this profile with the results of a 1979-82 withdrawal study. For the past 4 years, each degree credit student who has officially withdrawn from a course has been asked to complete a survey…

Possible relationships among selected psychological, sociological, and economic characteristics of doctoral students were studied, and these characteristics were compared for students who completed or withdrew from Doctor of Education degree (Ed.D.) programs at West Virginia University. Questionnaires were mailed to 254 Ed.D. recipients and 287…

St. Petersburg Junior College's Project Success provides mentoring and other special support services to students with low placement test scores. Teachers, librarians, counselors, and other staff members meet, usually on a weekly basis, with five students per semester to provide support and assistance with problems. The mentors receive reports on…

This annotated bibliography of 29 citations deals with the significance of extracurricular activities in the total educational process. There is a strong correlation between student involvement in extracurricular activities at the high school level and adult nonacademic achievement in later life. Aspects reported to be positively influenced by…

With the increasing number of part-time and adult students entering universities over the past several years, students who tend not to follow the traditional pattern of study, the task of accurate enrollment predictions has become increasingly difficult. The use of the Statistical Analysis System (SAS) software package to effectively track both…

A study investigated the reasons why some agricultural education degree recipients choose not to teach, some vocational agriculture teachers leave the profession, and some vocational agriculture teachers stay in teaching. The sample included all agricultural education majors graduating from Oregon State University (OSU) from 1971 to 1982. Data…

In 1989, a study was conducted at Prince George's Community College (PGCC) to determine the percentage of students enrolled in courses in the fall term who received passing grades, and to examine these pass rates for each course, academic discipline, and division. The study also examined student pass rates by gender, age, race, and admission…

A study was conducted that focused on 5-year graduation as a criterion for success at a major Eastern university, and a set of predictors for use by those concerned with admissions policy was developed. The best predictors of 5-year graduation were persistence to the second year and first-year cumulative grade-point average. Among pre-college…

A study was conducted at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) to compare the academic progress of two-year college transfers, senior college transfers, and continuing juniors (natives) at UIUC as measured by mean grade point average (GPA), academic status, and continued enrollment through 2 years after transfer. Study findings,…

Assessing the effectiveness of institutional efforts in student retention in Georgia higher education is addressed in papers from a conference sponsored by the University of Georgia. Included are Patrick T. Terenzini's keynote address, "What Research Tells Us about Student Retention" and an address by Harry Carter, "Student…

Literature reveals that students most apt to be potential dropouts are those referred to as a "high risk population." Black females depict the assumed poorest risk among an already high risk group. A study of black female secondary school students regarded as potential dropouts attempted to determine if persisters' and non-persisters' attitudes…