Factors influencing student retention and attrition in higher education

Student Retention and Attrition Student Retention

Student retention is an important area of concern for modern educational theory and praxis and can be described as, "...the area of research concerned with determining the forces that shape student persistence in institutions of higher education" (Student Retention). Retention rates are usually measured by "…the percentage of freshmen that re-enroll the next academic year as sophomores"(Arnold, 1999).

The primary reason that retention rates, along with attrition rates, are important is that retention rates are perceived not only in an economic sense but also as indicators of academic quality and student success (Arnold, 1999). This area of research also includes the many variables and problems that are involved in the often complex analysis of the factors affecting retention and attrition at universities and colleges.

What also has to be taken into consideration is that there are many types or forms of student attrition. This could include those students who 'drop out' as well as those who transfer to other educational institutions for various reasons; and those who do not fail but simply withdraw from the university to college for a wide-range of reasons.

What constitutes the central problematic of student retention and attrition is summarized by the following assessment of the situation. Student retention is a priority concern among many educators and institutions. It is described as being,

...now a matter of economic survival. The dwindling cohort of traditionally-aged college students has triggered a keen competition among colleges for enrollments; there is no longer a steady stream of entering students to take the place of those who drop out, and dropouts simply represent lost students and lost revenue.

(Assessing the Student Attrition Problem. ERIC Digest. ( 1984)

Assessments of the seriousness of this problem have increased over the past two decades. As one study notes;

Concern about retention and attrition rates in higher education have increased over the years. While the statistics remain fairly constant, approximately 50% of the freshmen enrolled in colleges and universities drop out before completing their programs. Efforts to identify and treat potential dropouts have grown considerably.

(Retention-Attrition in the Nineties. ERIC Digest)

This has meant that it has become increasingly important to identify the reasons for this attrition and those factors which influence and motivate student retention. There is a continuing need to "...determine the reasons why he or she might withdraw, and to see if procedures or programs could be established to help reduce those numbers that are going back out the open door" (Rounds, 1984, p. 1).

2. Patterns of Retention and Attrition

Figure 1.

( Source: http://academicmaps.blogspot.com/2009/12/7-myths-and-5-realities-of-retention.html)

A relatively conservative study of attrition and retention found that during the 1993 academic year "...over 800,000 entering freshmen withdrew from post-secondary education institutions in the United States prior to their second year "(Assessing the Student Attrition Problem). In terms of departing students it was found that, "…41 of every 100 entrants will depart the higher educational system without earning a college degree" and that "Most (three-quarters) of them will leave school in the first two years of college, the greatest proportion occurring in the first year of college" (Tinto, 1987, p. 21).

These figures therefore call for an in-depth assessment of the reasons and causes of student attrition, as well as the factors that could contribute to retention. This has led to a number of longitudinal studies and to the categorization of various types or patterns of attrition that most commonly occur. This refers to 'positive', 'neutral' and 'negative' attrition.

Briefly, positive attrition refers to "...students who dropped out after meeting their objectives or who transferred to another institution" (Assessing the Student Attrition Problem). This accounts for approximately twenty one percent of students. (Assessing the Student Attrition Problem). Neutral forms of attrition are described as, "students who left because of a job conflict or because of a scheduling conflict with another school. These reasons, which imply neither success nor failure" and this is estimated at about 34% (Assessing the Student Attrition Problem). Of concern to many administrators and educationists is the negative attrition pattern, which includes those students who"…"were unprepared for classwork to begin with or who were not sufficiently motivated to complete their course of studies"(Assessing the Student Attrition Problem). Negative Attrition accounted for about 16% of the attrition among vocational students and for 19% of the attrition among non-vocational students (Assessing the Student Attrition Problem).

This general overview should also take into account other demographics, such as gender and ethnicity.

2.1. Female Students

A study conducted by the Michigan Center for Career and Technical Education (MCCTE) at Michigan State University resulted in the following statistics with regard to female students; "…of the 1,397 students enrolled in developmental courses between 1994 and 1998, 73% were female, 94% were white, and the mean age was 31; & #8230; female students tended to receive a higher percentage of satisfactory grades than males & #8230;" (Kielbaso et al. 2004).

There are a number of factors to consider in this regard. Firstly, the generally better level of retention among female student was linked to better motivation and levels of achievement. However, it must be emphasized that these assumptions were difficult to measure and varied radically between institutions.

Many of the attrition and retention factors found in female students were attributable to all students. Attrition was found to be linked to aspects such as economic factors, social alienation and low self-perceptions. For example, at one university female students gave the following reasons for leaving during or after the first year.

I chose to transfer for two reasons," she said. "One, because I was switching my major from secondary education and Spanish to fashion design at a different school. And two, because I was unhappy & #8230; I just sat in my dorm and was bored from Friday night to Monday morning.

(Landgraf, 2010)

And; "The student transferred because she felt her options within the university were limited" Landgraf E. ( 2010).

One factor that has been found to be significant in terms of female retention rates has been linked to the gender of faculty members. As a study in this regard points out,

There is a positive relationship between retention of female students and the percentage of their science and mathematics classes taught by female faculty. Also faculty gender has a greater impact on female students when their classes have few female students.

(Robst, Keil and Russo, 1998)

3. Main Factors Affecting Retention and Attrition

Many of the central factors affecting retention and attrition have already been discussed above. As was referred to, preparation is a central factor that was found to be significant across demographic boundaries and especially among various ethnic groups. This refers to social, emotional as well as academic preparedness. Academic preparedness is noted in the literature as being of cardinal importance in continuing to the second year of study: "…those students with higher ACT scores were more likely to return for the second year" ( McDaniel and Graham, 2001).

Motivation and high academic goals were also seen as a primary factor in retention and student persistence. Other factors were monetary constraints that prevented continuation, as well as the important issue of social acceptance and involvement. This last factor was found to play an important part in attrition. Student involvement and engagement, as well as a sense of belonging, were shown in the literature to be important considerations (What Keeps Students in One Place? Study Examines Factors in Student Retention). As has been discussed, gender and ethnicity also influences retention rates in different ways. The difference between resident and local student status was also an influencing factor (What Keeps Students in One Place? Study Examines Factors in Student Retention).

A partial example of these factors can be seen in an Ohio study which found that "Personal adjustment reasons, cost and financial aid, and negative campus experiences were identified from a list of 48 potential reasons, as the reasons that influenced their decision to leave Ohio University" (First-Year Student Attrition at Ohio University 2003-04 to 2004-05…). The same study also found that "Stayers reported having more engagement and more frequent academically-oriented contacts with faculty than leavers"( First-Year Student Attrition at Ohio University 2003-04 to 2004-05…).

4. Solutions

Central to the above discussion is the fact that there are many variables and factors that come into play when considering attrition and retention- and that each institution differs in some aspects. This makes developing consistent and universally applicable solutions to this problem extremely difficulty.

On the other hand, there are some solutions that have been shown to have general application. One of these is developmental and remedial courses, which have been shown to better prepare the student for continuation and to help with aspects such as self-confidence and self-esteem, which reduces attrition.

This view is evident in the literature. There is a general consensus that initiatives such as early outreach programs aimed at developing students' academic competencies before admission to college and university, can significantly reduce attrition levels. Other programs, such as orientation programs, can help to "… ease the transition to college that contain academic strategies, social support, and information about campus life" (College Student Retention).

It has also been found that first-semester courses that continue orientation and provide support and information about campus and freshmen interest groups are extremely helpful. An important factor that has also been found to useful in retention is the implementation of academic skills development, such as basic skills, time management, tutoring, and course-specific skills (College Student Retention).

In the final analysis, there is probably no single or simple program that any one institution can promote that will solve the problem of attrition. However, what is also clear from the literature is that there many programs and initiatives that can help to increase retention and reduce attrition and that further research is needed in this field.