Staying or leaving: A multilevel approach to explaining variation in persistence rates among Christian college undergraduates

Abstract

This study of student persistence among institutions of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities represents an attempt to understand factors, particularly student satisfaction, that influence student persistence. Both student-level characteristics and institution-level characteristics have bearing on persistence rates, so a multilevel model is employed that takes both sets of characteristics into account. A thorough review of pertinent literature is included, as well as a depiction of Hierarchical Linear Modeling, the statistical method used. Several student-level characteristics that had a positive impact on persistence are presented, including class level, graduate or professional school aspirations, living on campus, satisfaction with academic life, satisfaction with religious life, and satisfaction with social life. Two student-level characteristics that had a negative influence on persistence, working off campus and attending an institution that was not one's first or second choice, are reviewed. Two institution-level variables that positively impacted persistence, including tuition and total enrollment, are presented, and one characteristic that negatively influenced persistence, percentage of women students, is discussed. The implications of these findings are advanced, and recommendations for practice and research are presented.