Recruitment, retention and placement: progressing the knowledge economy: special theme issue of Studies in Learning, Evaluation, Innovation and Development, Vol. 4, No. 2, 2007, pp. i-83

Special theme issue of Studies in Learning, Evaluation, Innovation and Development, Vol. 4, No. 2, 2007, pp. i-83

Bridging into the Academy: Examining the Value of First-Year Transition Programs

Moving through student educational experiences involves making continuous and significant transitions. Despite practiced transition experiences throughout various stages of life, the transition into the academy leaves many students overwhelmed, confused, and lost. As students entering the academy grow increasingly diverse, it becomes necessary to address specific needs they will have as they bridge into college. The author questions how successful transitions are accomplished and seeks to recognize methods for creating orientation and transition programs to meet the diverse needs of rising first-year students

A model of higher education institutions choice in Malaysia - A conceptual approach

With the liberalization of Malaysia government policy in higher education services in the 1990s, student enrollment has increased substantially. This is evidenced by the number of private higher education institutions being set up in Malaysia. However, the higher education institutions (HEIs) are faced with a difficult situation of trying to understand how students select HEIs of their choice. This conceptual paper seeks to explore the criteria with which students select their HEIs and build a conceptual model to suit to the local higher education services industry. Factors influence student’s choice of HEIs are student characteristics, external influences, college attributes. Also, in the model, information satisfaction as a mediating variable is discussed. Areas for future research are highlighted

Graduate Student Perceptions of the Use of Online Course Tools to Support Engagement

Graduate students in six online courses were asked to complete a questionnaire related to dimensions of engagement including participation and interaction, performance, studying, and relevance of material. Students were asked to indicate the importance of various online course features (e.g., online discussions) in enhancing their engagement in each dimension using a Likert scale. Twenty-six (29%) students completed the questionnaire. Students rated most course management system features as extremely important or very important. When the ratings for the four engagement areas were grouped by course site feature, the feature with the highest mean rating was “instructor feedback on assignments/assessments.” The feature with the lowest mean rating was “online chats with other students.” While the practices of the instructor in the courses studied may have influenced the students’ perceptions, it is clear that students especially value contact with the instructor

Recruiting on the Outside: Action-Oriented Research Solutions to External Student Recruitment in Collegiate Aviation Education

The authors present a case on various methods of recruiting external students that can be applied to any academic program. An example case study is provided to compare the most efficient practices used by a particular university dealing with strategies of aviation collegiate recruitment. In this paper the authors use the action research method to explore the different types and strategies of collegiate recruitment and discuss the process which must be followed to make it successful. They establish that student recruitment must be an active and ongoing commitment of each aviation academic unit. Related literature is examined and reported to theoretical and applied frameworks. The supporting research tools of focus groups and delphi are implemented in a triangulation discovery process which provides substantive results. Correlation analysis (Pearson\u27s “r7”) confirms the relationship of the variables. The results convey a system that maximizes student recruitment and concludes with a plan that can be generalized to most collegiate aviation programs. Discussion of results includes both a call for action and an introduction to a vital next step, retention

Who Benefits from Tuition Discounts at Public Universities?

Descriptive statistics show how tuition discount rates differ according to student characteristics such as academic level, race, residency, family income, and institution type. This study examines national patterns and also makes use of the 12-state representative samples available in NPSAS:04

A framework for analyzing performance in higher education

Drawing on Tinto’s dropout intentions model (1975), Bean’s socialization model (1985), Astin’s involvement theory (1999), and the service marketing literature, this research presents a conceptual framework for analyzing students’ satisfaction, perceived learning outcomes, and dropout intentions. This framework allows for a better understanding of how students assess the university experience and how these perceptions affect future intentions. This article presents four studies testing fragments of the framework using data sets come from three countries and various undergraduate programs (business, economics, geography, and nursing). The models are tested using structural equation modeling with data collected using a questionnaire adapted to the specific contexts. The models have the ability to explain the studies’ dependent variables and offer practical utility for decision making. Applicability of the conceptual framework is evaluated in various contexts and with different student populations. One important finding is that student co-creation can be as important as perceived service quality in explaining students’ cognitive learning outcomes, which in turn explain a high percentage of satisfaction and affective learning outcomes. The studies also shed light on the roles of variables such as emotional exhaustion and dropout intentionsThe author acknowledges support received from the Spanish Ministries of Education and Science, and Economy and Competitiveness (Projects SEJ2007-65897, EA2007-0184 and ECO2011-27942) and the collaboration of the universities and departments involved in the stud

Fatores De Persistência De Estudantes De Uma Univerisdade Particular Brasileira

As universidades lutam com o desafio de gerar contextos que facilitem o êxito dos estudantes. As principais teorias (TINTO, 1987; PASCARELLA; TERENZINI, 1991) indicam que existem vários fatores que interferem na satisfação dos estudantes para auxiliar na promoção de um ambiente que promova aprendizagem, o que gera a redução do abandono e promove a permanência. Portanto, o objetivo deste estudo é identificar os indicadores para diferenciar entre estudantes de graduação que completam seus estudos e aqueles que abandonam antes de concluir seus cursos. Este trabalho considera as características demográficas, as percepções, satisfação e atitudes em relação ao campus universitário e as atividades educacionais e extra-currisulares. Os dados foram coletados a partir de um questionário aplicado a uma amostra de 553 estudantes de uma universidade privada do Sul do Brasil. Dessa amostra, 205 foram estudantes que concluíram o curso, e 327 foram estudantes que abandonaram a Universidade entre 2010 e 2011. Realizaram-se análises multivariadas, entre o grupo de variáveis, dentre elas análise discriminante. O estudo apontou um conjunto de 12 variáveis estatisticamente significativas ao nível de 0,05, entre os estudantes que concluíram o curso e aqueles que abandonaram. Este estudo não encontrou resultados significativos quando analisado os coeficientes correlacionais entre os grupos. No entanto, constatou-se que os estudantes que se adaptaram aos ambientes universitários, tanto acadêmica, como socialmente, tendem a completar o curso. Aqueles que não se adaptaram tinham mais possibilidade de abandonar o seu curso. Outro fator significativo no abandono dos estudos refere-se à situação financeira dos estudantes. O estudo discute essas variáveis e as implicações derivadas de aplicar a teoria da persistência

Grounded Practical Theory to Improve Persistence-Retention Strategic Enrollment Management

The author introduces grounded practical theory (GPT) as a useful research approach in the field of strategic enrollment management (SEM) and its focus on persistence-retention. The GPT approach is then illustrated by engaging sample voices of persistence-retention and SEM; scientific theory (the philosophical level) and normative theory (the technical level) as observed in the literature. The scientific theory voices and normative theory voices are then positioned in relation to voices of students and practitioners (observed respondents) who have identified real world persistence-retention and SEM problems. These problems suggest implications for reconstructing the relationship between persistence-retention and SEM philosophical, theoretical, and problem levels. In that the GPT process culminates with the researcher presenting a grounded practical theory, a persistence-retention and SEM model of what “ought to be” in the first 100 days is presented for the purpose of stimulating discussion, beyond this article, among practitioners and academics

Deriving Enrollment Management Scores from ACT Data

This study is an investigation of the derivation of scores that predict whether or not prospective first-time freshmen will apply or will enroll and whether or not firsttime freshman enrollees will graduate using data from the ACT (American College Testing) assessment. Using a regression methodology, four basic scores are derived to be independent of academic ability, which is indicated by a fifth score. Using cross-validation populations, each of the scores is shown to predict the desired behavioral criterion quite well, and each should serve its intended purpose. The paper discusses potential uses of the scores and examines the inclusion or exclusion of no-response items (where the individual did not give a response), the optimal number of data items to include in an enrollment management score, and other characteristics of the scores