Could Campus Activity Involvement Keep Students in College?

Inside Higher Ed

Melissa Ezarik

December 10, 2024

Student success–focused professionals spend a lot of energy keeping tabs on struggling student trends, plus individual situations, to help them to stay in college, but just as important is getting a clear picture of which students wind up walking away.

Tyton Partners’ 2024 Listening to Learners study found a gap in awareness of supports for those currently in college versus those with some college credits but no degree. About half of current students knew about supports such as academic advising and mental health services, while for stop-outs this awareness dropped to 44 percent and 32 percent, respectively.

Meanwhile, a 2024 report from the Higher Education Research Institute (HERI) at the University of California, Los Angeles, revealed that about one in four stopped-out students see not feeling as if they fit in as a very important or important piece of their decision.

Of course, there’s no one reason or collection of reasons that lead to leaving college. The HERI report and other research have looked at financial factors influencing an inability to stay. What roles might education quality, wellness, campus climate or campus involvement play?

Continue Reading