Persistence of community college engineering science students: The impact of selected cognitive and noncognitive characteristics

If the United States is to remain technologically competitive, persistence in engineering programs must improve. This study on student persistence employed a mixed-method design to identify the cognitive and noncognitive factors which contribute to students remaining in an engineering science curriculum or switching from an engineering curriculum at a community college in the northeast United States. Records from 372 students were evaluated to determine the characteristics of two groups: those students that persisted with the engineering curriculum and those that switched from engineering; also, the dropout phenomenon was evaluated. The quantitative portion of the study used a logistic regression analyses on 22 independent variables, while the qualitative portion of the study used group interviews to investigate the noncognitive factors that influenced persisting or switching. The qualitative portion of the study added depth and credibility to the results from the quantitative portion. The study revealed that (1) high grades in first year calculus, physics and chemistry courses, (2) fewer number of semesters enrolled, (3) attendance with full time status, and (4) not participating in an English as a Second Language (ESL) program were significant variables used to predict student persistence. The group interviews confirmed several of these contributing factors. Students that dropped out of college began with (1) the lowest levels of remediation, (2) the lowest grade point averages, and (3) the fewest credits earned.