A First Look at Engaging Entering Students in Community Colleges

From the folks that brought you NSSE and CCSSE, comes SENSE—A Survey of Entering Student Engagement, and aimed directly at understanding first-year students in community colleges. This report is a summary of findings from surveys and qualitative analyses at 22 community colleges, because typically a community colleges loses about half of its first year students before they complete that first year. Unsurprisingly:

[W]ho is staying? CCSSE data consistently show that Current research indicates that helping students succeed through the equivalent of the first semester (12–15 credit hours) can dramatically improve subsequent success rates. Specifically, research shows that successfully completing the first semester improves students’ chances of returning for subsequent semesters, reaching key milestones, and ultimately earning certificates and degrees.