Center for Academic Excellence

• Early Alert Program
• The Role of Faculty in Retention
• Freshman Seminar
• Sophomore Connection
• Virtual Advisor
• Family
• Academic Resource Mentors
• Probation and Suspension
• Resource Learning Lab
• Supplemental Instruction
• Tutoring Program
• Forms
• Related Links
• Staff

 

Faculty Roles in Student Retention

 

ACT Study

This study by ACT, The Role of Academic and Non-Academic Factors in Improving College Retention, reflects ACT’s interest in analyzing critical issuesaffecting persistence in college.  It builds on extensive ACT research onretention that includes three national studies on retention practices, sixnational studies on academic advising, and 20 years of datacollection and reporting of college retention and degree completion rates.The report provides information about the influence of non-academic factors, alone and combined with academic factors, on student retention and performance at four-year colleges and universities. It highlights examples of successful retention strategies and stresses the need to evaluate the bases on which retention policies and programs are created. It concludes by offering recommendations to help administrators and policymakers consider both academic and non-academic factors in the design and implementation of retention efforts.
The strongest predictors of retention according to this report are:  Academic-related skills (time management, study skills, study habits); Academic self-confidence (confidence of being successful in the academic environment); and Academic goals (level of commitment to obtain a college degree).  Faculty can play an important role in increasing student academic skills and self-confidence through the kinds of topics, activities, and instruction used in their classrooms.

 

Project DEEP: Documenting Effective Educational Practice

Taking Student Retention Seriously

Updated: Friday, October 22, 2010

Return to Faculty Roles

About Site | Campus Directory | Ask UNCP | University Calendar