A first-year attrition survey: Why do they say they are still leaving?

Abstract

Many retention programs measure success through the basic metrics of 1-, 2- and 3- year retention rates and/or 6 year graduation rates. When these numbers are increasing we can infer that the retention initiatives are successful. Further study of this retained population through surveys and focus groups can yield additional insight into the reasons behind student persistence. But, what if we changed our perspective and instead examined the inverse population? What valuable insight can be gained by looking at the reasons behind why some still leave STEM programs? More specifically, are there predominant factors still underlying the loss of students from an engineering program even when overall retention is improving? In 2009, LeTourneau University, a small, private university sought to identify the reasons behind low graduation rates in the School of Engineering and Engineering Technology (SEET). They deployed an exhaustive survey to students that had left the school asking these former students (leavers) to rank the influences behind their decision to leave engineering. Results were utilized to help develop several first-year retention initiatives targeted at engineering persistence of first time in any college (FTIC) students. These initiatives, aided with funding through an NSF-STEP grant began with the 2010 cohort and have continued until present. Subsequent deployments of the identical survey to cohorts 2009 through 2013 have resulted in two distinct populations: PRE-STEP (cohorts 2006-2009) and POST-STEP (cohorts 2010-2013). This exhaustive survey asks questions such as: • Rank the top reasons why you changed your major from engineering or engineering technology to something else considering factors such as: lost interest or motivation to study engineering, had difficulty with coursework, uncertain of future career options, began engineering due to parental pressure but decided it was not for me. • If difficulty with coursework was a reason for leaving, please indicate the degree that certain factors played in this decision such as: inadequate study or time management skills, inadequate preparation in math and/or science, inadequate note-taking skills, addiction to gaming, or inadequate computer skills. • State in your own words why you left. This paper begins with a summary of the school's STEP retention initiatives providing a context for the subsequent comparison of survey results between the pre and post populations. It then provides composite survey results revealing the dominant factors affecting engineering attrition in the entire population while attempting to highlight differences in the results between the pre and post populations. Finally, the paper concludes by offering some lessons learned for institutions desiring to implement a similar assessment instrument.