Reaching the Finish Line: Can Coaching Help Students Graduate?

Many students who enter college do not finish, reflecting numerous academic, financial, and social barriers to postsecondary completion. Success Boston Coaching (SBC) provides students in the Greater Boston area with coaching during their first 2 years of college to help them overcome barriers to postsecondary completion and connect them to supports at their campuses and in their communities. We estimate the differences between SBC and comparison students with respect to students’ postsecondary completion rates 4, 5, and 6 years after they initially enroll in postsecondary education. Using administrative outcome data from the National Student Clearinghouse and 11 institutions of higher education in the Greater Boston area, we follow coached students and a matched group of similar noncoached students up to 6 years after their initial enrollment. Relative to noncoached students, SBC students had associate’s degree completion rates that were 85 percent higher after 4 years, 44 percent higher after 5 years, and 63 percent higher after 6 years. SBC students also completed bachelor’s degrees within 5 years at a 12 percent higher rate than their noncoached peers. Results suggest that coaching that offers comprehensive, personalized, and regularly occurring support to students is associated with higher completion rates, especially for students pursuing associate’s degrees. Additional efforts to directly remove barriers that students face may help more students graduate.