Male College Students and Success: A Study of the Early Predictors of First-Year Academic Performance, Progression, and Persistence of Male Undergraduate Students

While more students are going to college than ever before, greater gains are being made by females than males; a higher percentage of women enroll directly in college from high school and actually graduate from college four years later. This is a tribute to the advances that have been made in the last thirty years that support female success in high school and college. However, attention must be given to our male undergraduates as well so that equitable outcomes can be realized for all students. This study investigated the entering characteristics and early engagement variables that predict the success of first-year male undergraduates at a small, private liberal arts institution. Success was defined by performance (cumulative grade point average), progression (credit hours earned) and persistence (continued enrollment at the same institution the next year). The study population included 1,420 males who matriculated at this institution between 2003 and 2008. Additional analyses were conducted to investigate the same outcomes for minority, first-generation and high-need students. The results revealed that a combination of observed and intrinsic variables predict the first-year success of male undergraduates. High school grade-point average, SAT scores, family emotional support, need and receptivity to institutional help predicted academic performance. High school grade point average, SAT scores, family emotional support, desire to finish college and receptivity to institutional help predicted progression in credit hours earned. Further, high school grade point average, sense of financial security, desire to finish college and receptivity to institutional help predicted persistence. Only high school grade point average and receptivity to institutional help predicted all three variables of performance, progression and persistence. The analyses for minority, first-generation and high-need male undergraduates revealed that although these groups of students entered college with higher risk factors, their persistence outcomes were equitable with males who were white, had college degreed parents and lower levels of financial need. This finding suggests that the environmental experiences of these students at this particular college may contribute to better than predicted outcomes considering their entering characteristics. This study points to the importance of institutions being aware of both observed and intrinsic motivational variables in predicting the first-year success of male undergraduates. Without diminishing the commitment we need to maintain to the success of female students, this study also emphasizes the importance of paying attention to factors that contribute to the success of male undergraduates as well.

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