Abstract
Attrition remains an ongoing issue in enabling programs and the broader higher education sector. For more than 31 years, CQUniversity (Central Queensland University) Australia’s Skills for Tertiary Education Preparatory Studies (STEPS) program has prepared students for university, many of whom are from one or more Australian Government target equity groups. A 2012 CQUniversity institutional review of STEPS resulted in significantly improved retention, yet attrition rates in STEPS are still of concern. Qualitative research conducted in 2016-17 with 23 students who withdrew from STEPS between 2013 and 2015, and 10 Access Coordinators located across those CQUniversity campuses offering STEPS, have provided valuable insights into reasons for continued attrition. Based on suggestions from students and Access Coordinators, recommendations to address attrition have resulted, the intention being to increase student success and satisfaction, and improve retention in STEPS.
Highlights
The fundamental aim of enabling programs is to assist academically underprepared learners to acquire the necessary knowledge, skills and confidence to transition to and succeed in higher education
This paper explores attrition in an enabling program offered by a regional Australian university by utilising a qualitative methodology that allows for the unpacking of some of the complexities, such as those described by Yardley et al (2013), of student attrition
This paper has found that the causes of attrition for the students in the enabling program investigated here are broadly similar to causes of attrition in first-year undergraduate programs (Nelson et al, 2009)
Summary
Attrition remains an ongoing issue in enabling programs and the broader higher education sector. A 2012 CQUniversity institutional review of STEPS resulted in significantly improved retention, yet attrition rates in STEPS are still of concern. Qualitative research conducted in 2016-17 with 23 students who withdrew from STEPS between 2013 and 2015, and 10 Access Coordinators located across those CQUniversity campuses offering STEPS, have provided valuable insights into reasons for continued attrition. Based on suggestions from students and Access Coordinators, recommendations to address attrition have resulted, the intention being to increase student success and satisfaction, and improve retention in STEPS. Student Success: A journal exploring the experiences of students in tertiary education. As an open access journal, articles are free to use, with proper attribution, in educational and other non-commercial settings.
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