College Student Retention on a Racially Diverse Campus: A Theoretically Guided Reality Check

Theoretically grounded in Tinto’s model of retention and Braxton and colleagues’ revisions, this study is designed to examine the applicability of the integration model to students of different racial backgrounds. Results from a sample of full-time undergraduate students at a research-extensive university suggest that (a) academic and social integrations function differently to the persistence of Black and White students, (b) financial pressure was the most consistent impediment to college retention for all students, and (c) institutional control over academic quality is critical to student retention. In addition, results show that students of different racial backgrounds do not differ significantly in their reported intention to drop out. Implications for policy and planning are discussed