ERIC Number: EJ980416
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2012
Pages: 10
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1536-3759
EISSN: N/A
To Dream the Impossible Dream: College Graduation in Four Years
Raikes, Mark H.; Berling, Victoria L.; Davis, Jody M.
Christian Higher Education, v11 n5 p310-319 2012
The cost of higher education continues to climb, while calls for increased institutional accountability and the value of a "four-year degree" are ever present. This research sought to identify factors by which consumers might predict four-year graduation rates at institutions within the CCCU. A hierarchical multiple regression analysis of data from 80 CCCU institutions indicated that 48.6% of the variation in four-year graduation rates could be explained by the model, after adjusting for sample size. Five variables were identified as significantly contributing to the variation in four-year graduation rates: 1) institutional financial aid, 2) "real tuition cost" (tuition less institutional financial aid), 3) instructional expenditures per full-time equivalent student, (4) student-faculty ratio, and 5) average GPA of the incoming class. However, institutional aid and "real tuition cost" were the major contributors; once they were factored into the equation, student-faculty ratio and instructional expenditures became insignificant, although average GPA of the incoming class remained significant as each variable was added to the analysis. In light of the ever-rising cost of higher education, this study indicated that information is readily available to help families make informed college-choice decisions. By doing their homework, a family may increase the likelihood of selecting an institution in which their student achieves the seemingly impossible dream: achieving a "four-year" degree in four years. (Contains 2 tables.)
Descriptors: Church Related Colleges, Time to Degree, Predictor Variables, Graduation Rate, Spiritual Development, Student College Relationship, Student Financial Aid, Student Costs, Expenditure per Student, Teacher Student Ratio, Grade Point Average, Tuition, Multiple Regression Analysis
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Higher Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A