Student Retention in Higher Education: Some Conceptual and Programmatic Perspectives

Abstract

Over the past two decades the attrition of students in higher education has raised grave concerns. These concerns were raised initially over the higher rates of attrition of minority students in the early 1980s following a decade of record rates of minority enrollment in higher education institutions during the 1970s. However, by the mid-1980s the rates of high attrition of African-American and Hispanic students had grabbed the attention of the academic community across the country. When scholars and higher education administrators began to take notice of the higher rates of attrition of minority students they found out that student dropout and attrition in higher education institutions was a problem with all students, not just students of color. This article summarizes and presents perspectives on the causes of attrition and the problems of the retention of students in higher education. These ideas and perspectives are based on what has been learned from research on student retention over the past two decades. Also, programmatic strategies that have been implemented at institutions are summarized as examples of student retention initiatives that have had significant impacts.