IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/abk/jajeba/ajebasp.2011.301.311.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Measuring Predictors of Student Retention Rates

Author

Listed:
  • Allen L. Webster
  • Vince E. Showers

Abstract

Problem statement: Colleges and universities place more emphasis on student retention rates than ever before. Educational institutions are intensifying efforts to discourage student departure and preserve their established student base. Economic pressures that bear heavily on academic administration make such efforts highly critical for institutional success. Research on this vital issue is especially important due to the vigorous competition among college and universities to recruit students and maintain enrollment levels. This pressure is heightened by the fact that it costs more to attract students than it does to retain them. Approach: This study uses institutional-based data to examine student attrition levels with the intent to identify their chief determinants and provide the foundation for post-secondary institutions to explore the viability of their own retention programs. Discriminant analysis is used to distinguish those schools that exhibit a higher degree of success in retaining student enrollments from those who suffer higher departure trends. Results: Tuition, student/teacher ratio and the amount of dollar aid offered the students all play substantial roles in encouraging persistence. The acceptance rate and enrollment levels were found to provide less discriminatory power. Conclusion: Students are influenced by the personal attention they receive and the manner in which their chosen institution of higher education caters to their individual needs, problems and concerns. Colleges and universities concerned with student retention would benefit from concentrated programs designed to provide individualized student services that address immediate student needs.

Suggested Citation

  • Allen L. Webster & Vince E. Showers, 2011. "Measuring Predictors of Student Retention Rates," American Journal of Economics and Business Administration, Science Publications, vol. 3(2), pages 301-311, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:abk:jajeba:ajebasp.2011.301.311
    DOI: 10.3844/ajebasp.2011.301.311
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://thescipub.com/pdf/ajebasp.2011.301.311.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://thescipub.com/abstract/ajebasp.2011.301.311
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.3844/ajebasp.2011.301.311?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. John J. Cheslock & Matt Gianneschi, 2008. "Replacing State Appropriations with Alternative Revenue Sources: The Case of Voluntary Support," The Journal of Higher Education, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 79(2), pages 208-229, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Amy Y. Li, 2017. "Dramatic Declines in Higher Education Appropriations: State Conditions for Budget Punctuations," Research in Higher Education, Springer;Association for Institutional Research, vol. 58(4), pages 395-429, June.
    2. Justin C. Ortagus & Lijing Yang, 2018. "An Examination of the Influence of Decreases in State Appropriations on Online Enrollment at Public Universities," Research in Higher Education, Springer;Association for Institutional Research, vol. 59(7), pages 847-865, November.
    3. Frank Fernandez & Xiaodan Hu & Mark Umbricht, 2023. "Examining Wyoming’s Endowment Challenge Program: A Synthetic Control Analysis," Research in Higher Education, Springer;Association for Institutional Research, vol. 64(5), pages 654-674, August.
    4. Junghee Choi, 2024. "Performance-Based Funding and Certificates at Public Four-Year Institutions," Research in Higher Education, Springer;Association for Institutional Research, vol. 65(6), pages 1065-1084, September.
    5. Cheslock, John J. & Callie, Trina M., 2015. "Changing salary structure and faculty composition within business schools: Differences across sectors and state funding levels," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 42-54.
    6. Young-Hwan Lee & Kwon-Sik Kim & Kwang-Hoon Lee, 2020. "The Effect of Tuition Fee Constraints on Financial Management: Evidence from Korean Private Universities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(12), pages 1-19, June.
    7. Elizabeth Bell & Wesley Wehde & Madeleine Stucky, 2020. "Supplement or Supplant? Estimating the Impact of State Lottery Earmarks on Higher Education Funding," Education Finance and Policy, MIT Press, vol. 15(1), pages 136-163, Winter.
    8. Cheslock, John J. & Shamekhi, Yahya, 2020. "Decomposing financial inequality across U.S. higher education institutions," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    9. Jennifer A. Delaney & Tyler D. Kearney, 2022. "TV Networks for College Sports: Implications for Institutional Subsidies," Research in Higher Education, Springer;Association for Institutional Research, vol. 63(7), pages 1158-1203, November.
    10. Siân Mughan & Jessica Sherrod Hale & Joanna Woronkowicz, 2022. "Build It and will They Come?: The Effect of Investing in Cultural Consumption Amenities in Higher Education on Student-Level Outcomes," Research in Higher Education, Springer;Association for Institutional Research, vol. 63(1), pages 60-91, February.
    11. Bae, Kee-Hong & Kim, Seung-Bo & Kim, Woochan, 2012. "Family control and expropriation at not-for-profit organizations: evidence from korean private universities," MPRA Paper 44029, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    12. Ozan Jaquette & Bradley R. Curs, 2023. "Enrollment Growth and Faculty Hiring at Public Research Universities," Research in Higher Education, Springer;Association for Institutional Research, vol. 64(3), pages 349-378, May.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:abk:jajeba:ajebasp.2011.301.311. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Jeffery Daniels (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://thescipub.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.