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 SEM Canada |
| Strategic Enrolment Management WORKS |
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| SEM WORKS CANADIAN E-NEWSLETTER, Volume 7, 2009 |
This month’s e-newsletter features the topic of Student Retention. Research has demonstrated that the negative consequences from high student dropout or stopout rates are far-reaching, and that the student, the institution and society in general all suffer. Understanding the causes for student attrition and the conditions underlying student persistence and completion are a prerequisite to defining strategies that enhance student retention and academic success. There is an abundance of research that reveal common factors associated with early student departure, such as a lack of student-institution fit, student academic preparedness, social and academic engagement, and educational focus, to name a few. There is also a growing body of research specific to the Canadian context that is beginning to provide insights on the effectiveness of intentional programs in addressing student retention challenges. A high-level scan of Canadian university and college websites indicates that many institutions have placed high importance on student retention, as evidenced by the breadth of purposeful programs that are in place.
This e-newsletter presents specific examples of the range of student retention programs identified from the scan of institutional websites. The examples have been organized around five key principles that reportedly underlie effective student retention, including:
- Recruit to retain students
- Front-load student retention efforts
- Adopt an integrated student-centered model of delivering education and services
- Leverage enabling technologies
- Invest in research and assessment
This edition also includes a number of Professional Resources that may serve as information sources to support institutional retention planning efforts. Your perspectives on the content of these newsletters are important to us. Please visit our Facebook site to offer comments, suggest topics for future editions, and share your own experiences with other professionals in the field. The next edition of SEM Canada will feature the topic, Emerging Technologies in Teaching and Learning.
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Go to www.facebook.com, create a FREE account, and search under the titled page.
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RECRUIT TO RETAIN STUDENTS: EXAMPLES OF CANADIAN REGIONS AND INSTITUTIONS
INTRODUCING INNOVATIVE PROGRAMS
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- Alberta Pursues Remote Learning Opportunities - The province of Alberta wants to lure more Albertans to pursue post-secondary education and it hopes teaching courses through cell phones and personal digital assistants will do the trick. Read More
- Government of Saskatchewan - offers a Graduate Retention Program (GRP), which rewards individuals for building their future in Saskatchewan by providing a rebate up to $20,000 of tuition fees paid by eligible graduates who live in Saskatchewan and who file a Saskatchewan income tax return. Read More
- Manitoba Government - introduces "Bright Futures Fund" to encourage at-risk students to stay in school, pursue college and university. Besides additional encouragement and support, students participating in Bright Futures initiatives will also receive scholarships or a registered education savings plan (RESP) grant toward the cost of post-secondary education. Read More
- NDP touts tax rebate to attract, retain young grads - University and college graduates who study anywhere in Canada will receive "major incentives" to come to Nova Scotia under a tax rebate plan announced by NDP leader Darrell Dexter. Read More
- University of Calgary - offers a unique guarantee to some students: graduate in four years, or extra tuition will be covered by the school. Read More
- University of Victoria - offers "Experience UVic", a campus visit program for 'admitted' students to determine whether UVic is the right institution for them. Read More
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FRONT-LOAD STUDENT RETENTION EFFORTS: EXAMPLES OF CANADIAN INSTITUTIONS
OFFERING INNOVATIVE FIRST YEAR EXPERIENCE PROGRAMS...
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- Acadia University - offers "Connections", a trans-disciplinary first-year option involving student-centred modules team taught by instructors from different disciplines. Read More
- Dawson College - offers the "Partner" program, which pairs new students with Dawson staff. Read More
- Laurentian University - has created a "one-stop-shop" First Year Experience Office. Read More
- McMaster University - provides a wiki site designed to help students adjust to their first year using McMaster's libraries. Read More
- Simon Fraser University - requires all students complete a minimum of 36 credit hours of courses designated as Writing, Quantitative, or Breadth, with a grade of C- or better in order to achieve their undergraduate degree. Read More
- University of Guelph - offers a "Bounce Back" program for students in the first year of their undergraduate degree who earned an average of less than 60% in their first year on campus. $1,000 is offered towards tuition for participants who make the greatest improvements in their marks. In addition, a "Supported Learning Groups" program is offered free of charge to help students transition from high school. Read More For an additional resource, click here.
- University of Saskatchewan - offers a "Learning Communities Program", a cohort based program where 30-50 students take a predetermined set of three courses together and meet weekly for study, information and mentoring. Read More
- University of Victoria - offers Student Transition Services programs to facilitate student connections and build a sense of community for both undergraduate and graduate students; as well as offers “Peak UVic” residential life student success program. Read More For an additional resource, click here.
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ADOPT AN INTEGRATED STUDENT-CENTERED MODEL OF DELIVERING EDUCATION AND
SERVICES: EXAMPLES OF CANADIAN INSTITUTIONS FOSTERING A CULTURE OF
STUDENT-CENTEREDNESS
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- Carlton University - offers "Carleton Complete", a comprehensive support system to help students complete their degrees and prepare for real-world challenges. Read More
- Concordia University - offers educators "Tips for retention-aware teaching". Read More
- Queen's University - has a "Community Outreach Centre" that is a resource and support centre for students who reside off-campus. Read More
- Seneca - offers the "Success@Seneca" program, a multi-dimensional student success program that connects students with a coach and extended transition and orientation services. Read More
- University of Calgary - created a Teaching and Learning Fund to support learning projects that "increase and improve one-on-one interaction with professors for first-year students"; and has introduced a "co-curricular student record". Read More For an additional resource, click here.
- University of British Columbia - offers a "Learning Exchange Trek Program", through which students are placed in service roles in Vancouver's Downtown East side to support inner-city schools and non-profit organizations; as well as a "Tri-mentoring program" for third- and fourth-year students who are matched with faculty or industry mentors in their areas of study. These students, in turn, mentor first- and second-year students within their faculty or school. Read More For an additional resource, click here.
- University of Waterloo - offers the world's largest co-op program with a 95% employment rate reported for 2007. Read More
- University of Western Ontario - offers "Scholar's Elective" courses that connect 1st year and other students with faculty mentors in research projects. Read More
- Vancouver Island University - provides a Teaching and Learning Centre resource site on "Supporting Student Retention". Read More
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LEVERAGE ENABLING TECHNOLOGIES: EXAMPLES OF ON-LINE LEARNING RESOURCES
SUPPORTING STUDENT SUCCESS...
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- "University Junction" - a new free online network for undergraduate students has been created to supply information to students ranging from class notes to lectures. Co-created by a McGill University graduate student, the website is currently accessible to students at numerous campuses across North America. Read More
- "The eLearners Advisor" - a free assessment tool designed to help learners determine their readiness for an online degree program, as well as to understand some of the success factors for online students. Read More
- "SMARTHINKING" - an online tutoring and writing service. Read More
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INVEST IN RESEARCH AND ASSESSMENT: EXAMPLES OF CANADIAN INSTITUTIONS
ADOPTING AN EVIDENCE-BASED APPROACH TO RETENTION PLANNING…
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- Algonquin College- established a student retention project research site. Read More
- Confederation College, Mohawk College and Seneca College - are participating in a first of its kind retention study Foundations for Success funded by the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation. Interim results show that directed access to student support services in combination with financial incentives has led to a 6.4 per cent increase in student retention for program participants. Read More
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This e-newsletter was edited by Lynda Wallace-Hulecki, Senior Consultant at SEM WORKS, based on publicly-available information. Neither the editor nor SEM WORKS assume liability for comments or information posted by others. Please send your comments, news releases, or submissions to Kara Mohre, Director of Marketing, at kmohre@semworks.net
407 Pebble Ridge Court - Greensboro, North Carolina 27455 - USA
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