The purpose of this study was to examine the predictability of selected cognitive and non-cognitive factors on the academic achievement of first-year college students. Data were collected from over 150 freshman students enrolled at a Historically Black College and University located in the southern region of the United States. Data were examined…

Enrollment managers strategize to transform high school students into college freshman, also known as ripe honey, but efforts are stifled when rising tuition costs negatively impact graduation rates. Tuition prices have risen from $500 to upwards of $60,000 and rising in just 50 years, and higher education is under fire for the continual rise in…

This dissertation investigates several topics in state merit-based financial aid research. The main research content includes three separate studies, primarily using the administrative datasets from the Missouri Department of Higher Education. The first study is an empirical paper that examines the effects of the Missouri Bright Flight Scholarship…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the extent to which the relationship between (a) student demographic variables (i.e., ethnicity, gender, first generation status, low income), college admission variables (i.e., admission status, SAT/ACT scores, remediation requirements), and (b) GPA and retention was influenced by first-year…

Transfer and bachelor's degree attainment rates of low-income community college beginners lag behind their middle- and high-income peers. As community college continues to be an affordable and accessible route to higher education, consideration should be given to how to close the gap in transfer and bachelor's degree attainment rates of low-income…

No group of college students persists at a rate lower than freshmen students to their sophomore year. In 2011, those rates varied from 55.4% at two-year public colleges to 80.3% at private schools offering a PhD program. This study investigated the impact of five pre-matriculation variables on the retention of freshmen students to their sophomore…

The purpose of this study was to identify the nonacademic reasons that preclude African American males from enrolling in college after high school completion. The examination of this study evolved as a result of an abundance of African American males choosing not to enroll in college after completing high school. A mixed-methods research design…

The purpose of this study was to identify the nonacademic reasons that preclude African American males from enrolling in college after high school completion. The examination of this study evolved as a result of an abundance of African American males choosing not to enroll in college after completing high school. A mixed-methods research design…

The purpose of the study was to investigate the associations between first-time full-time freshmen's attributes and fall-to-fall retention at Northeast State Technical Community College. The 15 attributes included age, first-generation student status, gender, high school classification, race, the student's application date to the institution…