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 relative to the start of the semester, the 4 ACT test sub-scores, remedial/developmental course placement, major program of study, financial aid status, first-semester grade point average, and end-of-first-semester credit hour enrollment status. In addition to collecting the variables under study, each first-time full-time freshman's entry term and enrollment status for the subsequent fall semester was ascertained. This information was used to categorize individuals into persister and non-persister classifications for the subsequent fall. The data for this longitudinal study were housed in Northeast State's student records database, Student Information System. A preliminary analysis of the data was conducted to ascertain descriptive statistics. Chi Square and independent samples t tests were used to determine if there was an association between each variable and fall-to-fall retention. A multiple linear regression model was used to estimate the effect of the predictor variables upon the criterion variable, fall-to-fall retention. The results indicated that the variables of age, first-generation student status, gender, and race were not significantly related to fall-to-fall retention, while high school classification, application date, the 4 ACT sub-scores, remedial/developmental course placement, major program of study, financial aid award, first-semester grade point average, and end-of-semester credit hour enrollment status were significantly related to fall-to-fall retention. A multiple linear regression model indicated that the greatest influences upon fall-to-fall retention when researching the collective predictor variables were first-semester grade point average,the number of remedial/developmental courses required,the number of hours in which the student was formally enrolled in at the end of the first semester,an application date greater than or equal to 61 days prior to the start of the fall semester,receipt of financial aid in the form of Pell Grant funds only (negative association),associate of applied science student status (negative association), andGED graduate (negative association).

The purpose of this quantitative comparative study was to determine the relationship between retention and academic success of students who participated in a First-Year Experience (FYE) course and students who did not participate in a FYE course within a southeastern community college in the United States. The impact of the relationship was to inform an understanding of how a FYE course influences student success. Archival data were collected from the southeastern community college’s student information system, Banner, Data for first-time full time students were gathered, including whether or not the individuals enrolled in a FYE course. Other data included the student’s gender, at-risk status, and non-traditional student status. Retention data of the first-year full-time students were collected and measured in accordance with enrollment requirements of the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR). Data for academic success were collected and measured by first-year student’s cumulative GPA. Chi-square tests of independence and independent sample t tests were used to examine the relationship of the FYE course with outcomes that measured student success. Results from the chi square tests indicated, overall, the participants of the FYE course had significantly higher retention rates than those students who did not participate in the FYE course. The independent sample t test indicated students who participated in the FYE course had significantly higher cumulative GPA scores than those who did not participate.

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