An assessment of the impact of university retention program strategies on the retention and academic success of Alaska Native undergraduate engineering students

Native American enrollment and graduation rates remain among the lowest of all ethnic/racial student cohorts at universities in the United States. Attracting and retaining Native American engineering students is challenging. To advance the research on this subject, this study describes the impact of the Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program (ANSEP) university retention strategies on the persistence and academic success of Alaska Native engineering undergraduates at one public university in Alaska.;Twenty years of student records were analyzed using chi-square tests. The study found that significantly (p < .05) more Alaska Native students were enrolled in engineering gateway courses and awarded Bachelor of Science degrees in civil engineering during the ten-year period after ANSEP began compared to the prior ten-year period. A survey was designed and administered to 43 Alaska Native ANSEP participants pursuing Bachelor of Science degrees in engineering. The survey results suggest that ANSEP students perceive the following experiences as important contributors to their success as students, in order of highest response rates, (1) attending tutoring/recitation sessions together, (2) studying together outside of classes, (3) taking classes together, (4) receiving ANSEP scholarship funding, (5) experiencing summer internships, (6) attending weekly ANSEP meetings, (7) developing friendships with other ANSEP students, and (8) socializing together outside of class.;The study findings suggest that ANSEP retention strategies positively influence the academic and social engagement of ANSEP students. The survey results further suggest that ANSEP students experience high levels of peer support, congruence with the university through ANSEP, and commitment to complete their degrees. The success of Alaska Native engineering students might be enhanced at other universities by their active participation in a university retention program with a supportive and safe learning community that provides purposeful academic, social, and financial support in a manner that incorporates and affirms Native values and cultures.