Student Retention: Impacts of an Agricultural Economics First Year Seminar Course

Dixie Watts Reaves and Mary Marchant
Authors registered in the RePEc Author Service: Dixie Watts Dalton

No 56476, 2010 Annual Meeting, February 6-9, 2010, Orlando, Florida from Southern Agricultural Economics Association

Abstract: As universities seek to enhance student retention, a positive first year experience is critical for student success. The objective of this research is to determine whether an agricultural economics first-year seminar course improves retention rates of its undergraduate students. This course provides a unique opportunity for students to learn about the agricultural economics discipline, and also gain insights into what it takes to be a successful college student. Analysis examines whether departmental retention and graduation rates improve after course implementation in 1998, and compares departmental retention and graduation rates to those of the college and university. Qualitative analysis using student evaluations, senior exit interviews and student surveys also assess the impact of this course on student success. Results show that retention and graduation rates improve following course implementation. Retention, four-year graduation rates and five-year graduation rates for the Department exceed those for the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and exceed the four-year graduation rates for the university.

Keywords: Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 15
Date: 2010
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://ageconsearch.umn.edu/record/56476/files/20 ... _Reaves_Marchant.pdf (application/pdf)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ags:saea10:56476

DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.56476

Access Statistics for this paper

More papers in 2010 Annual Meeting, February 6-9, 2010, Orlando, Florida from Southern Agricultural Economics Association Contact information at EDIRC.
Bibliographic data for series maintained by AgEcon Search ().