Consortium for Student Retention Data Exchange

1700 Asp Ave.
Norman, OK 73072

Phone: 405-325-2158
Fax: 405-325-7309
csrde@ou.edu

Biology Student Departure and Persistence: The Effects of College Biology Experience and Course Performance

presented by Sarah Lang, Indiana University-Purdue University-Indianapolis

Date of webinar: May 12, 2010

*Materials for this webinar are not currently available.

REGISTRATION INFORMATION
To register for this webinar download this document, fill it out, and either mail or fax it to the CSRDE.

Abstract

Attrition from the biology major is a complex problem because biology is the most popular of the STEM disciplines and thus loses the greatest number of individuals. Using a sequential, explanatory, mixed methods design, this paper compared students who persisted in the major with students who left the major by examining how their college biology experiences figured into their persistence in or departure from the major. All participants entered The University of Texas at Austin as biology freshmen in the fall semesters of 2001 through 2004; 319 students responded to a questionnaire developed for the study; and 35 students participated in semi-structured life story interviews and homogenous focus groups. Findings of this study demonstrate: 1) Biology persisters did not actively decide to stay in the biology major; they chose not to leave; 2) Biology switchers did not leave biology due to preference for other disciplines; they left due to difficulties or dissatisfaction with aspects of the biology major, including their courses, faculty, and peers; and 3) Performance, particularly in introductory coursework, had a powerful, though differential effect on persistence, depending on how well participants performed in non-biology coursework or in comparison to their peers.

The Consortium for Student Retention Data Exchange at the University of Oklahoma is a consortium of two-year and four-year institutions dedicated to achieving the highest levels of student success through collaboratively sharing data, knowledge, and innovation.

CSRDE is a sponsored activity of the Center for Institutional Data Exchange and Analysis at