The Flip Side of the Attrition Coin: Faculty Perceptions of Factors Supporting Graduate Student Success

Abstract

Doctoral attrition consistently hovers around 50% with relevant literature identifying several mediating factors, including departmental culture, student demographics, and funding. To advance this literature, we interviewed 38 graduate faculty advisors in science, engineering, or mathematics disciplines at a research-extensive university to capture their perceptions of factors supporting graduate student success. Using a constant-comparison method, we found that faculty perceptions aligned within three major categories, termed: motivated student behaviors, formative student learning experiences, and essential student knowledge and skills. Student motivation was most prominently represented in findings. This aligns with prior studies showing that faculty tend to identify the cause of graduate student failure as lying within the students themselves and rarely discuss their role or the department's contribution to attrition. Thus findings offer an opportunity to reflect and improve upon practice. The study also highlights actions graduate students can take to increase success, such as developing collegial relationships and early involvement in research and scholarly writing. We encourage graduate faculty advisors and others to identify ways to help graduate students overcome common obstacles to enduring and succeeding within graduate programs. Faculty perceptions are also examined by discipline and faculty rank, and directions for future research are offered.

Does a Good Advisor a Day Keep the Doctor Away? How Advisor-Advisee Relationships are Associated with Psychological and Physical Well-Being among Graduate Students

“…While there are many factors critical to an institution's success, graduate student drop out and graduate student ill health is a source of a huge amount of wasted institutional money and faculty effort. Attrition rates for doctoral students has been as high as 50% (Gilmore et al 2016) with rates being even higher for students of color in Predominantly white institutions (McClain and Perry 2017). Pairing past work that shows that inadequate advisement (Chrzanowski and Poudyal 2019) and poor advisoradvisee relationship (Lovitts 2001) associated with high attrition rates, past work tying future academic success to advisor relationship quality (Pizzolato 2008;Schlosser et al 2011), and now this study's findings on the well-being correlates of this relationship, it would behoove universities to start thinking carefully about how to foster healthy faculty-graduate student relationships.…”

Interaction Equivalency Theorem: Towards Interaction Support of Non-Traditional Doctoral Students

“…These factors often limit the participation of non-traditional students (Cotton et al, 2017). They experience barriers to socialization (Naidoo, 2015); structural impediments, negative interactions, and feelings of otherness (Gilmore, Wofford, & Maher, 2016); a perception of being treated less preferentially than traditional students (Zahl, 2015); a longer time to completion (Earl-Novell, 2006); and perceptions of not having the same opportunities as peers (Pifer & Baker, 2016;Weidman, Twale, & Stein, 2001). Cultural examples of barriers include first-generation students not being prepared to interact with faculty members in the way that is needed and expected (Padgett as cited in Cole & Griffin, 2013) and international students being reticent to interact with faculty (Weidman & Stein, 2003).…”

Doctoral student support programs in diverse national contexts

“…Ineffective or poor faculty support contributes to doctoral student attrition in addition to the lack of financial support, the lack of integration into the program or institution, and feelings of cognitive inadequacy (Nettles and Millett, 2006). In the USA, close to 50 percent of doctoral students do not finish their degree, a percentage that varies by institution and academic discipline (Gilmore et al , 2016). One-quarter of Turkish doctoral students from the nation’s elite research universities leave their programs before degree completion (Ertem and Gökalp, 2016).…”