503 – Applications for Education and Schools Research
Statistical Models of Faculty Retention: Logistic Regression, COACHE, and Support Mechanisms
Mack Shelley
Iowa State University
LIsa Larson
Iowa State University
Sandra Gahn
Iowa State University
Diane Rover
Iowa State University
Beate Schmittmann
Iowa State University
Megan Heitmann
Iowa State University
The persistence of faculty members in higher education careers is fundamental to the strength of an academic institution, its research enterprise, and its instructional and service mission. The purpose of this study is to understand what motivates tenure-track faculty to stay at their institution. Faculty retention is enhanced by increasing faculty members' sense of perceived competence, autonomy, and institutional relatedness. Data were collected from 558 tenure-track faculty at a large Midwestern university responding to the Collaborative for Academic Careers in Higher Education survey. Full Professors are less likely than Assistant and Associate Professors to report that they are going to stay longer. STEM faculty are more likely than non-STEM faculty to respond that they are going to stay longer. Full Professors are more likely to know how long they are staying compared to other ranks. Assistant Professors are less likely to take actions to leave than are Full Professors. STEM faculty are less likely than non-STEM faculty to take actions to leave. Full Professors were more likely to have renegotiated their terms of employment compared to Assistant and Associate Professors.