Retention efforts increase at CSC

Q: Why is student retention important for Chadron State College?

Retention is a key part of the student life-cycle towards academic success for the student and the college. Retention demonstrates student success toward completion and is an indicator of how well the institution is doing in supporting student success and completion. 

Student retention is also a key piece of the total enrollment picture for the institution and sets the tone for enrollment trends. If we can keep a higher percentage of our students, typically the total enrollment of the institution will increase as well. Additionally, with declining high school populations in our area, it becomes even more important to retain as many students as possible.



Q: What data is available on student retention rates at CSC? Have retention rates changed over time, and if so, in what ways? How do retention rates at CSC compare to other similar institutions?

The main benchmark for student retention is the IPEDS data reports that are submitted annually. Trend information can be found at this link: http://csc.edu/ir/factbook.csc in the Fact Books and the most recent submitted IPEDS data can be found in the additional links on the page. 

Comparing our retention rates to other institutions varies depending on what institutions are included in the comparison group. We have done several comparisons and typically our retention rates are right in line with what other institutions are reporting.

Q: How do retention rate calculations account for students who transfer to other institutions before graduation to complete their degree?

Retention is a year-to-year picture of students that were new to the institution one fall and how many were still enrolled the following fall. If a student has transferred to another institution, when reporting to IPEDS and other external agencies, these students are excluded and therefore counted as not retained. We do have other reports that we monitor internally that look at transfer-out students and count them in an overall success-rate for the institution.

Q: Have specific factors been identified that cause students to not complete their full course of study at CSC? If so, what are those factors and which are considered the most significant?

CSC has not been able to pinpoint specific success factors for our students that do not complete and this is one of the focus-areas that is being integrated in the Strategic Enrollment Management Plan. There is a lot of literature available that discusses student success factors.



Q: Do student retention rates vary by program of study? If so, what might cause the variability?

Yes, retention rates vary by program. Again, CSC has not been able to dive that deep into the data yet. Some initial thoughts are that students out of high school tend to migrate to majors that are popular and don’t consider if they are best suited for that major. Once the student takes courses in their area, they discover they need to change majors and sometimes CSC does not offer that major, so the student will transfer to another institution.

Q: What steps have been taken to improve student retention rates at CSC?  Have those been successful?

The Strategic Enrollment Management Plan was created to address key areas of enrollment at CSC, including retention. We are in year two and just starting to implement some of the strategies that support the goals. 

Early indications show that efforts are creating positive results. Persistence rate of the Fall 2017 full-time, freshman class enrolled in Spring 2018 (as of the beginning of the term) was 82.23 percent, compared to the persistence rate of the Fall 2018 full-time, freshman class enrolled in Spring 2019 (as of the beginning of the term) was 89.92 percent.



Q: How can faculty and staff identify students who may be thinking of leaving CSC before completing their full course of study? In what ways can faculty and staff help retain those students?

One of the positive characteristics of CSC is the small class size and faculty-to-student ratio. We are able to get to know our students and easily identify when a student might be struggling. Strategies imbedded as part of the Strategic Enrollment Management Plan aim to help encourage and support one-on-one conversations with students through advising efforts. 

There are additional systems in place to allow faculty and staff to submit names of students that might require additional support. Simply being mindful of behaviors of students and reaching out makes a huge difference.