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Taking the Guesswork Out of Student Retention Rates
In today’s competitive higher education landscape, retaining students is crucial. The National Student Clearinghouse’s services and data offerings offer academic leaders access to insights about learner pathways and outcomes that they can’t find anywhere else. Here are a few ways that the Clearinghouse can help colleges and universities measure and improve retention.
Identifying At-Risk Students
The Postsecondary Data Partnership (PDP) provides access to rich insights on student enrollment, credit accumulation, course completion, and transfer patterns. With PDP, leaders can identify at-risk students and understand the factors contributing to dropping out. That means intervention can occur earlier, and institutions can help get learners back on track sooner.
For example, San Antonio’s Northeast Lakeview College, which experienced a significant stop-out population, uses PDP data to measure how they are meeting student needs. The PDP informs a scorecard that guides the college in continually adjusting to students’ evolving needs. “PDP has become the cornerstone on which we build our understanding of our students coming in, their persistence, and their completion rates,” said Martin Fortner, Director of Institutional Research at Northeast Lakeview College.
Tracking Student Movement
StudentTracker® for Colleges & Universities provides college administrators with valuable insights into student movement so they can see where their students go after leaving their institution. This includes students transferring to other schools, dropping out, or enrolling elsewhere. By tracking student movement across institutions, colleges can identify students who transfer out and analyze patterns. This can help them understand why students leave and develop programs that encourage students to stay.
Based in Dobson, North Carolina, Surry Community College uses StudentTracker to ensure they are not creating barriers to student success. “We decided that we needed to improve our understanding of our students and launched several initiatives, starting with StudentTracker for Colleges and Universities. Our goal with each of these programs was to improve the overall student experience with a detailed focus on the first-time student,” said Michael Faulkner, Executive Director of Institutional Research at Surry. As a result, student withdrawals decreased 48%.
Benchmarking Enrollment Trends
The Clearinghouse Research Center provides in-depth analysis of enrollment trends, including first-year enrollment, persistence, retention, and completions. With this knowledge, academic leaders can measure how their institution compares against state and national averages.
Ultimately, the Clearinghouse empowers colleges to move beyond guesswork and implement data-driven strategies to improve retention rates. By understanding student needs and trends, colleges can create a more supportive and engaging learning environment, leading to a more successful future for both students and institutions.
