Coaching thousands of prospective and enrolled students each day generates tremendous amounts of rich data – both quantitative and qualitative – on student attitudes, beliefs and behaviors. As demographics shift in higher education and we see non-first-time, non-full-time (a.k.a. Post-Traditional) students becoming the majority, we thought it would be helpful to share some of the insights we’ve gained through our work.
This data is not from a survey. It is not based on what box a student checked at a given moment. This data is from coaching records that document repeated, meaningful interactions over time. It represents the honesty and depth of understanding that only come through a trust-based relationship.
Specifically, the data set consists of coaching records for roughly 140,000 prospective and enrolled post-traditional learners coached by InsideTrack over several years. It provides an interesting look into key issues, including their:
- Reasons for pursuing a degree
- Institution selection criteria
- Concerns with online learning
- Non-start reasons, and
- Drop reasons