ERIC Number: EJ1106655
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2016
Pages: N/A
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-1556-3847
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Institutional Characteristics and Student Retention: What Integrated Postsecondary Education Data Reveals about Online Learning
Chiyaka, Edward T.; Sithole, Alec; Manyanga, Fidelis; McCarthy, Peter; Bucklein, Brian K.
Online Journal of Distance Learning Administration, v19 n2 Sum 2016
Online course delivery continues to grow as a viable means of providing increased educational access to more students, but low student retention rates remain a major challenge. In this study, key institutional characteristics that influence student retention in postsecondary education are analyzed. These are student-faculty ratio, graduation rate, acceptance rate, enrollment rate, institutional aid rate, default rate, and institution type. Using multivariable regression analysis, our findings show that graduation rate, default rate, and college type were significantly associated with retention rate among online degree-granting institutions. Furthermore, graduation rate was found to be strongly positively linearly related with retention rate, while default rate was strongly negatively linearly related with retention rate. Overall these findings have direct implications on the planning and management of online instruction.
Descriptors: Institutional Characteristics, School Holding Power, Postsecondary Education, Electronic Learning, Online Courses, Teacher Student Ratio, Graduation Rate, College Admission, Access to Education, Enrollment, Loan Default, Correlation, School Effectiveness, Academic Persistence, Student Financial Aid, Databases, Multivariate Analysis, Statistical Analysis, Predictor Variables, Multiple Regression Analysis
State University of West Georgia. 1601 Maple Street, Honors House, Carrollton, GA 30118. Tel: 678-839-5489; Fax: 678-839-0636; e-mail: distance@westga.edu; Web site: http://www.westga.edu/~distance/ojdla
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Postsecondary Education; Higher Education
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Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A