Since 1992, the UK Government has published so-called "school league tables" summarising the average General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) "attainment" and "progress" made by pupils in each state-funded secondary school in England. While the headline measure of school attainment has remained the percentage…

Successful completion of a university degree is a complex matter. Based on considerations regarding the demands of acquiring a university degree, the aim of this paper was to investigate the utility of complex problem-solving (CPS) skills in the prediction of objective and subjective university success (SUS). The key finding of this study was that…

Data from the School Success Profile generated by 19,228 middle and high school students were organized into three broad categories of risk and protective factors--control, support, and challenge--to examine the relative and combined power of aggregate scale scores in each category so as to predict academic success. It was hypothesized that higher…

There is currently a nursing shortage in the United States. By 2022, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) expects, the number of job openings for Practical Nurses (PN) will be 168,500, an increase of 25% over 2012 (BLS, 2014). Nursing education does not currently meet present, much less future needs. Nursing programs have limited space; according…

As the U.S. population ages and policy changes emerge, such as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010, the U.S. will experience a significant shortage of Registered Nurses (RNs). Many colleges and universities are attempting to increase the size of nursing cohorts to respond to this imminent shortage. Notwithstanding a 2.6%…

The purpose of this study was to assess the merit of the Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal as a pre-admission criterion in conjunction with the frequently utilized admission criteria of the college prerequisite grade point average and the National League of Nursing pre-admission test. Data were collected from 192 first-year nursing…

The use and validity of the Graduate Record Examination General Test (GRE) to predict the success of graduate school applicants is heavily debated, especially for its possible impact on the selection of underrepresented minorities into science, technology, engineering, and math fields. To better identify candidates who would succeed in our program…

This study describes the use of a collaborative learning approach in a psychological statistics course and examines the factors that predict which students benefit most from such an approach in terms of learning outcomes. In a course format with a substantial group work component, 166 students were surveyed on their preference for individual…

Every year a group of graduates from high schools enter the engineering programs across this country with remarkable academic record. However, as reported in numerous studies, the number of students switching out of engineering majors continues to be an important issue. Previous studies have suggested various factors as predictors for student…

This study looked at the success rate of first-year students in a new program for conditionally admitted students. Logistic regression was used to determine the impact of several pre-college variables, such as high school grade point average and ACT scores, and orientation generated variables, specifically placement test results, on the dependent…

Numerous challenges can be associated with pursuing a degree as a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA). The risk to perspective students and their nurse anesthesia programs may be lessened if success factors for program completion and passing of the national certification examination (NCE) could be identified. The purpose of this ex post…

Enrollment in STEM majors has improved recently, but there continues to be concern over students' retention in those majors, especially women and minority students. The purpose of this study is to develop an integrated understanding of how multiple predictor variables affect student degree attainment, and to ascertain how those variables' impact…

Advanced Placement (AP) and Dual Enrollment (DE) are two programs that allow high school students to earn college credits. The recent growth of these programs has been unprecedented. However, there is little evidence that compares how they fare in terms of improving college access and success. Using data from two cohorts of all high school…

According to generational theorists, the interests and experiences of incoming students have fluctuated over time, with Millennial students being more engaged and accomplished than their predecessors. This project explored data from 1974-2007 to determine the actual trends in engagement and accomplishments for three generations of students. Over…