Increasing Persistence: Research-based Strategies for College Student Success

"Of all the books addressing the puzzle of student success andpersistence, I found this one to be the most helpful and believe itwill be extremely useful to faculty and staff attempting to promotestudent success. The authors solidly ground their work in empiricalresearch, and do a brilliant job providing both an overview of therelevant literature as well as research-based recommendations forintervention." —Gail Hackett, Ph.D., provost and executivevice chancellor for academic affairs; professor, counseling andeducational psychology, University of Missouri, Kansas City

Research indicates that approximately forty percent of allcollege students never earn a degree anywhere, any time in theirlives. This fact has not changed since the middle of the 20thcentury.

Written for practitioners and those who lead retention andpersistence initiatives at both the institutional and public policylevels, Increasing Persistence offers a compendium on collegestudent persistence that integrates concept, theory, and researchwith successful practice. It is anchored by the ACT's What Works inStudent Retention (WWISR) survey of 1,100 colleges anduniversities, an important resource that contains insights on thecauses of attrition and identifies retention interventions that aremost likely to enhance student persistence.

The authors focus on three essential conditions for studentsuccess: students must learn; students must be motivated,committed, engaged, and self-regulating; and students must connectwith educational programs consistent with their interests andabilities. The authors offer a detailed discussion of the fourinterventions that research shows are the most effective forhelping students persist and succeed: assessment and courseplacement, developmental education initiatives, academic advising,and student transition programming. Finally, they urge broadeningthe current retention construct, providing guidance to policymakers, campus leaders, and individuals on the contributions theycan make to student success.