The Impact of Entry Pathways on Student Retention and Achievement
Navigating the transition from high school to college can be challenging, particularly for students with lower academic preparedness. To address this, many institutions offer entry pathways designed to support students as they acclimate to higher education. Our retention analytics team at SightLine worked with a regional 4-year public institution in the Midwest to evaluate how different entry pathways for students may impact their early and long-term success at the institution.
Historically at this institution, students who entered college with lower academic readiness were required to enroll in a General Studies (GS) program before they could pursue their preferred field of study. This pathway was designed to provide additional support and improve their readiness for more specialized coursework. An added benefit was the option to graduate with an associate degree, which could serve as a steppingstone towards a bachelor's degree.
Many students who were required to enter the school through the GS program, were frustrated at not being able to enter in their preferred area of study right away. From an enrollment perspective, this seemed like a deterrent to students, and they believed enrollment may have been suffering due to this requirement. The GS enrollment requirement policy was removed to support overall enrollment growth.
While some students still chose to enter the GS program voluntarily, the policy change led to noticeable shifts in retention rates, particularly among the 2021 cohort. Of course, this shift also occurred during the pandemic which may have been the actual cause of the retention decline and therefore further analysis was required.
Research Questions
To understand the impact of this policy change, several key research questions were posed:
1. Is there a relationship between persistence and the General Studies program?
2. For students with lower academic readiness, does achievement vary based on the entry pathway?
3. Once students have entered their preferred program of study, does their success relate to their initial entry pathway?
Analysis
To investigate these questions, we analyzed retention rates and academic performance based on entry pathways and high school GPA. The focus was on students with lower high school GPAs and how their academic trajectories differed before and after the policy change.
1. Students with Less Than a 2.5 High School GPA: This group was examined to understand the impact of entry pathways on students with the lowest academic readiness. Retention rates for these students were compared before and after the policy change, offering insights into how the removal of the GS program requirement affected their persistence.
2. Students with 2.5 – 3.0 High School GPA: To determine if the effects of the policy change were confined to students with the lowest GPAs, this segment was analyzed separately. This helped in assessing whether the removal of the GS program had a broader impact or was specific to the most academically challenged students.
We performed the same analysis for students with greater than 3.0 high school GPA’s as well, with no significant findings for these more academically prepared students.
Findings
We assessed the retention 1st to 2nd year rates of students before and after the policy change in 2021 for students starting in the GS associate program, other associate programs, and bachelor programs. This analysis was segmented by high school GPA shown below.
Students with Less Than a 2.5 High School GPA:
Results for this analysis are shown in the figure below. For students entering in the GS program, retention rates before and after the policy change did not differ (black dotted line). This indicates there were still students who were self-selecting to begin in the GS program that were not significantly impacted by the challenges on the pandemic or this policy change.
Retention rates for students beginning in a different associate program of choice increased after the policy change (red dashed line). Meaning that some students who otherwise would have been required to enter the GS associate program first, may have better outcomes by starting out in their associate program of choice instead of the GS program.
Retention rates for students entering directly to their 4-year degree program of choice declined significantly after the policy change (green line).
This indicates that some students who would have been required to enter the GS program first, are performing poorly if they enter directly into a bachelor program.
Students with 2.5 – 3.0 High School GPA:
Findings from the lowest GPA bracket above were not consistent for students with a 2.5 – 3.0 high school GPA (figure below).
There were smaller and less significant changes in retention rates for these students, with almost no change for students in the GS program or other associate programs.
There was a small, not statistically significant improvement in retention rates for students in the bachelor programs.
Longer Term Impact
We also assessed college GPA for the least academically prepared students, four terms into their college experience to understand the longer-term impact of this policy change (table below).
Academic performance showed no significant difference based on the entry pathway for students choosing to pursue an associates degree.
For students that ultimately matriculate into their four-year program of study, college GPA’s were higher for students who had started out in the GS program initially.
Discussion
Overall, this suggests that students who plan on pursuing an associate degree may not benefit from starting in a general studies program. Students that are academically under-prepared and plan on pursuing a four-year program, would benefit from starting out in the GS program. Monitoring of the impact of entry pathways on student retention and longer-term success is ongoing to improve our understanding of the impact that the pandemic may have played in this dynamic, before reinstating the GS entry pathway requirement for some students.
The case study underscores the complexities of academic entry pathways and their impact on student success. While the removal of the General Studies program requirement aimed to increase student yield, it also highlighted the importance of targeted support for students with lower academic readiness. Institutions must carefully consider these dynamics when designing entry pathways to balance yield and support for student success.
To learn more about this study or other student retention research work that we do at SightLine, feel free to reach out to info@sightline.com with an inquiry.
