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Getting students to stick around: The effects of completing an introductory course on persistence for community college students

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  • Dora Gicheva
  • Julie Edmunds
  • Marie Hull
  • Beth Thrift

Abstract

This paper studies the impacts of withdrawing from and failing an online course, relative to successful completion, on persistence for community college students. We leverage random assignment of students to instructors for identification. Withdrawing reduces the probability of persistence by about 20 percentage points, while the impact of failing is smaller and statistically indistinguishable from zero. Course withdrawals are highly correlated with institutional withdrawal, which is then linked to lower likelihood of returning the following semester. Our findings reinforce the importance of academic momentum: remaining in a course keeps students attached to college even if they earn a failing grade.

Suggested Citation

  • Dora Gicheva & Julie Edmunds & Marie Hull & Beth Thrift, 2025. "Getting students to stick around: The effects of completing an introductory course on persistence for community college students," Contemporary Economic Policy, Western Economic Association International, vol. 43(3), pages 427-451, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:coecpo:v:43:y:2025:i:3:p:427-451
    DOI: 10.1111/coep.12685
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