While most public community colleges today advocate that they are open door and have liberal registration policies, there is little current research on the effects of late registration on student performance at the community college level. Community colleges need sound evidence in order to implement institutional practices and policies that will benefit students. The purpose of this study was twofold: (1) to examine the effects of late registration on student success at a rural Mississippi community college and (2) to identify reasons that students register late. In examining the effects of late registration on student success the study focused on the success measures of student GPA, course withdrawal, and persistence. Data for the first study purpose were obtained from the records of students enrolled at the respective college during the fall 2011, 2012, and 2013 semesters. For the second study purpose data were obtained using a self-developed survey that was emailed to students who late registered during the fall 2014 semester. Independent samples t-test, chi-square, frequencies, and percentages were used for data analysis. Results of the study indicate that late registration has a significantly negative effect on student success. Results of the statistical analysis are presented in narrative and table form to answer the 4 research questions. The study concludes with a summary of findings and a discussion of the limitations of the study. Recommendations for practitioners and policymakers are discussed along with recommendations for future research.

Master of Science / Department of Special Education, Counseling and Student Affairs / Doris Wright Carroll / This study reviews the development of distance education, adult students and specifically looks at the reasons for online course withdrawal. The study specifically examines personal and course-related reasons distance students withdraw from courses. Online students who withdrew from a course were invited to complete a course withdrawal survey to provide additional information about why they withdrew. Students reported balance between coursework and work/family commitments most frequently as the primary reason for course withdrawal. Results indicated that students withdrawing because of work/family reasons have higher intentions of re-enrolling in the future. Faculty and staff response time was another reason reported for course withdrawal. A perceived delay in communication was related to course withdrawal. Results are discussed further and implications are addressed.

A state college in the mid-Atlantic United States requires a music theory course for 4 of its undergraduate music programs. In the 6 years prior to this study, students had difficulty with the course, with many failing or withdrawing. Tinto's theory of student retention served as the foundation of the conceptual framework for this study, the purpose of which was to identify challenges to successfully completing the course. This purpose was reflected in the study's driving research question focused on students' experiences regarding challenges to success. In this instrumental case study, 12 students and 2 instructors participated in individual interviews, and 7 students participated in a focus group. Initial coding was used for the 1st-cycle coding phase. Axial coding was used for the 2nd cycle. Seven themes emerged through an iterative categorization protocol: 3 student-related themes, 3 college-related themes, and 1 theme relating to solutions for overcoming challenges to success in Music Theory I. Although data indicated that students experienced diverse challenges to success, the need for additional help was most evident. Thus, a logical project for this study was a music theory lab designed using best practices for course redesign and adult learning found in the literature and developed to support student learning of the concepts presented in Music Theory I. This study may contribute to positive social change by providing an opportunity for students at the college to receive academic support structured to meet their learning needs and improve their performance in Music Theory I, which may prevent students from withdrawing from or failing the course.

This study examined how student characteristics could be used to predict whether or not a community college student would persist in an online course. The research question guiding the study was, “Which student characteristics can be used to best predict the persistence of community college students in online courses?” The student characteristics examined were learning style, locus of control, computer experience and access, previous online experience and demographics. A survey instrument consisting of two previously developed instruments and a Computer Experience scale that was created by the researcher specifically for this study, was administered to online students at one Florida community college for the pilot study and five additional Florida community colleges for the full study. Confirmatory and exploratory factor analysis were conducted on the computer experience scale to determine if there was an underlying hidden structure. Stepwise logistic regression was completed to determine the student characteristics that were significant predictors of online persistence, as well as an equation that could be used to predict whether or not a community college student would persist in an online course. Confirmatory and exploratory factor analysis revealed that the Computer Experience scale consisted of three underlying subscales. The researcher named the three subscales based on the similarities of the variables that were associated with each factor: Factor one (basic computer skills); Factor two (Internet/email skills); Factor three (interactive computing skills). Three of the initial 25 predictor variables were found to be significant predictors of community college online persistence: GPA, auditory learning style, basic computer skills. An increase in both auditory learning style and basic computer skills was associated with a decrease in the odds of course persistence. On the other hand, an increase in GPA was associated with an increase in the odds of course persistence. Additionally, an equation to predict whether or not an online community college student would persist in an online course was developed. Implications for community college administrators as well as recommendations for future studies are also provided in the study. / Dissertation / PhD

During the past decade, there has been a dramatic increase by postsecondary institutions in providing academic programs and course offerings in a multitude of formats and venues (Biemiller, 2009; Kucsera & Zimmaro, 2010; Lang, 2009; Mangan, 2008). Strategies pertaining to reapportionment of course-delivery seat time have been a major facet of these institutional initiatives; most notably, within many open-door 2-year colleges. Often, these enrollment-management decisions are driven by the desire to increase market-share, optimize the usage of finite facility capacity, and contain costs, especially during these economically turbulent times. So, while enrollments have surged to the point where nearly one in three 18-to-24 year-old U.S. undergraduates are community college students (Pew Research Center, 2009), graduation rates, on average, still remain distressingly low (Complete College America, 2011). Among the learning-theory constructs related to seat-time reapportionment efforts is the cognitive phenomenon commonly referred to as the spacing effect, the degree to which learning is enhanced by a series of shorter, separated sessions as opposed to fewer, more massed episodes. This ex post facto study explored whether seat time in a postsecondary developmental-level algebra course is significantly related to: course success; course-enrollment persistence; and, longitudinally, the time to successfully complete a general-education-level mathematics course. Hierarchical logistic regression and discrete-time survival analysis were used to perform a multi-level, multivariable analysis of a student cohort (N = 3,284) enrolled at a large, multi-campus, urban community college. The subjects were retrospectively tracked over a 2-year longitudinal period. The study found that students in long seat-time classes tended to withdraw earlier and more often than did their peers in short seat-time classes (p < .05). Additionally, a model comprised of nine statistically significant covariates (all with p-values less than .01) was constructed. However, no longitudinal seat-time group differences were detected nor was there sufficient statistical evidence to conclude that seat time was predictive of developmental-level course success. A principal aim of this study was to demonstrate—to educational leaders, researchers, and institutional-research/business-intelligence professionals—the advantages and computational practicability of survival analysis, an underused but more powerful way to investigate changes in students over time.

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