Comparative Analysis of Undergraduate Student Attrition in U.S. and Russian Universities

• In Event: Facilitating International and U.S. Student Development

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to compare the factors that influence student attrition in four-year public universities in the United States and Russia as well as draw attention to similarities and differences in departure trajectories within US and Russia’s higher education systems. The longitudinal student-level data that come from administrative databases in universities in Ohio and Russia are analyzed applying the event history method. Our initial findings generally support the hypothesis of academic momentum originally developed by Adelman suggesting that the speed at which undergraduate students initially advance through their studies is associated with the probability of leaving institution of higher education. The study has practical implications for universities’ officials and policymakers in both countries.

Authors

• Olga Kondratjeva, The Ohio State University

• Elena Gorbunova, National Research University Higher School of Economics

• Joshua D. Hawley, The Ohio State University