The study proposes using path analysis and residual plotting as methods supporting environmental scanning in strategic planning for higher education institutions. Path models of three levels of independent variables are developed. Dependent variables measuring applications and enrollments at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University are…

Path analysis and linear structural relations (LISREL) provide the institutional researcher with some extremely powerful statistical tools. However, they must be applied and interpreted carefully with a full understanding of their limitations and the statistical assumptions on which they are based. (Author)

Data collected in a fall 1975 survey of the spring 1974 graduates of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC-CH) were used to analyze the effects that various student characteristics have on the selection of post-college activities by bachelor's degree graduates. A 25-percent stratified, random sample was used with a response rate of…