Retention plans are central to strategic enrollment management (SEM). Many colleges and universities create retention plans in an attempt to increase student persistence and success. Throughout AACRAO Managing Consultant Dr. Tom Green’s 25 years of serving a variety of institutions, he has observed that this process can be seriously flawed.
In his recent SEM Quarterly article, Retention Plans: Why They Fail and How We Can Fix Them, Green noted that there is a common set of problems and issues that institutions experience, regardless of location, size, control, and type. The most common and significant of these issues are discussed in full in this article, along with ways that colleges and universities can avoid these pitfalls. More specifically, Green discussed data analysis, retention committees, the role of admissions, and overall improving student success.
Currently, there are a large number of colleges and universities that are concerned with retention. Green acknowledged that, “they are under increasing pressure to address the retention, persistence, and graduation issues that are lower than they believe are possible and others may be demanding of them”. So then the question becomes, how can institutional data be used more effectively to guide retention planning? First, the assembly of data must start with a strong set of questions that will guide its extraction. He provided the following examples:
- Are there peer institutions that can help us establish reasonable expectations for retention and graduation rates?
- What sets of characteristics form profiles of different types of students who may be less likely to succeed?
- Are there certain courses or even course sections that result in higher rates of withdrawal or failure than others?
- Are there certain types of aid or gaps in aid that are associated with attrition or retention?
- After the first year of study, are there other times when students leave or become less successful?
Retention problems will not solve themselves. If your institution is in need of retention assistance, Dr. Tom Green along with the AACRAO Consulting staff can conduct an in-depth analysis of the current state of your institution-wide retention efforts, identify areas for improvement, and assist in developing a practical retention plan for long-term success. For more information about how your institution can benefit from our services, please contact us at (202) 355-1056.