This study explores the net effects of institutional type on degree attainment. The literature suggests that two-year college matriculants are much less likely to earn a baccalaureate degree than students first enrolling at four-year colleges. Such findings hold even when researchers control for differences among the two groups. Previous studies did not, however, examine whether age and full-time enrollment are factors in persistence. This study seeks to determine if the established pattern is valid when examining only "traditional" students.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Adelman, C. (1992). The way we are: The community college as American thermometer. (Report No. OR-92-5 11). Washington DC: United States Government Printing Office. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED338269)
2.
Aldrich, J., & Nelson, F. (1984). Linear probability, logit, and probit models. London: Sage Publications.
3.
Anderson, K. (1984). Institutional differences in college effects. Boca Raton: Florida Atlantic University. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED256204)
4.
Berkner, L., He, S., & Forrest Capaldi, E. (2002). Descriptive summary of the 1995-96 beginning postsecondary students: Six years later. (Report No. NCES 2003-151). Washington, DC: United States Department of Education. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED471901)
5.
Brint, S., & Karabel, J. (1989). The diverted dream: Community colleges and the promise of educational opportunity in America, 1900-1985. New York: Oxford Press.
6.
Cohen, A., & Brawer, F. (1996). The American community college. San Francisco: Jossey Bass.
7.
Demaris, A. (1992). Logit modeling. London: Sage Publications.
8.
Dougherty, K. (1992). Community colleges and baccalaureate attainment. Journal of Higher Education, 63, 188-214.
9.
Frye, J. (1993). The rhetoric of professional educators and the definition of public junior colleges from 1900 to 1940. Community College Review, 20(4), 5-16.
10.
Grubb, W. (1991). The decline of community college transfer rates: Evidence from national longitudinal studies. Journal of Higher Education, 62, 194-222.
11.
High School & Beyond Sophomore Cohort: 1980-92 Postsecondary Education Transcripts (1995) [Restricted data file]. Washington DC: National Center for Education Statistics.
12.
Hosmer, D., & Lemeshow, S. (1989). Applied logistic regression. New York: John Wiley & Sons.
13.
Hutcheson, P. (1999). Reconsidering the community college. History of Education Quarterly, 39, 307-320.
14.
Levine, D. (1986). The American college and culture of aspiration, 1915-1940. New York: Cornell University Press.
15.
Liao, T. (1994). Interpreting probability models: Logit, probit, and other generalized linear models. London: Sage Publications.
16.
Menard, S. (1995). Applied logistic regression analysis. London: Sage Publications.
17.
Nunley, C., & Breneman, D. (1988). Defining and measuring quality in community college education. In J. S. Eaton (Ed.), Colleges of choice: The enabling impact of the community college (pp. 62-92). New York: Macmillan.
18.
Pascarella, E., & Terenzini, P. (1991). How college affects students: Findings and insights from twenty years of research. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
19.
Piazza, R. (1996). A test of Tinto's model of voluntary student departure at a proprietary institution (college students, retention) (Doctoral dissertation, Georgia State University, 1996). Dissertation Abstracts International, 57, 539.
20.
Porter, O. F. (1989). Undergraduate completion and persistence at four-year colleges and universities. Completers, persisters, stopouts, and dropouts. Washington, DC: National Institute of Independent Colleges and Universities. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED319343)
21.
Retherford, R., & Choe, M. (1993). Statistical models for causal analysis. New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
22.
SAS Institute (1995). Logistic regression examples using the SAS system. Cary, NC: SAS Institute Incorporated.
23.
Tinto, V. (1993). Leaving college: Rethinking the causes and cures of student attrition. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.
24.
Trawick, S. (1994). Student persistence at a postsecondary technical institute (Doctoral dissertation, Georgia State University, 1996). Dissertation Abstracts International, 55, 3172.
25.
Tuma, J. and Carroll, C. (1995). High school and beyond: 1992 descriptive summary of 1980 high school sophomores 12 years later. (Report No. NCES95305). Washington DC: Office of Educational Research and Improvement.
26.
Velez, W. (1985). Finishing college: The effects of college type. Sociology of Education, 58, 191-200.
27.
Whitaker, D., & Pascarella, E. (1994). Two-year college attendance and socioeconomic attainment: some additional evidence. Journal of Higher Education, 65(2), 194-210.
28.
Zahs, D., Pedlow, S., Morrissey, M., Marnell, P., and Nichols, B. (1995). High school and beyond fourth follow-up methodology report. (Report No. NCES95305). Chicago: The University of Chicago. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED386459).
29.
Zwerling, S. (1976). The crisis of the community college: Second best. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company.
