Jerry Trusty’s Research on Long-Term Educational Development and Bachelor’s Degree Completion:

In these studies, I (along with others) examined the effects of middle-school and high-school variables on whether students later completed the bachelor’s degree or not. Data spanned 12 years, from when young people were in the eighth grade to when they were eight years past high-school graduation. All students in the samples had attended college with the purpose of completing the bachelor’s degree. The Long-Term Educational Development (LTED) model resulted from the studies.

The major findings are:

• Math matters most to students’ long-term educational development.
  
• The intensive math courses that students take in high school are very important, over and above math ability levels upon entering high school.
  
• Math is very important for various segments of the U.S. population (racial-ethnic groups, genders, socioeconomic status groups, urban, suburban, rural young people).
  
• Students’ participation in school-sponsored extracurricular activities has a strong, positive influence on later completing the bachelor’s degree. This effect is particularly strong for African American and Latino young people.
  
• Students’ good attendance in high school (few times skipped classes, school) is positively related to bachelor’s degree completion.
  
• Parenting variables (parents’ expectations, parental involvement) have positive effects on degree completion.
• The LTED model fits well for students from all racial-ethnic groups, from all socioeconomic strata, of both genders, and for urban, suburban, and rural students.

The studies are copyrighted by the particular organizations that publish the journals. For more specific information, consult the particular journal/article. These journals are widely available in university libraries, and some may be available in full-text, online.

Trusty, J., & Niles, S. G. (2003). High-school math courses and completion of the bachelor’s degree. Professional School Counseling, 7, 99-107.

Trusty, J., & Niles, S. G. (2004). Realized potential or lost talent: High-school variables and bachelor’s degree completion. Career Development Quarterly, 53, 2-15.

Trusty, J. (2004). Effects of students' middle-school and high-school experiences on completion of the bachelor's degree. (Research Monograph no. 1) Center for School Counseling Outcome Research, University of Massachusetts-Amherst (Trusty, J. (2004). Effects of Students' Middle-School and High-School Experiences on Completion of the Bachelor's Degree. Research Monograph published by Center for School Counseling Outcome Research, University of Massachusetts-Amherst (http://www.umass.edu/schoolcounseling/PDFs/ResearchMonograph1.pdf).

Trusty, J., & Hutchinson, C.A. (2004). Effects of students' middle-school and high-school experiences on completion of the bachelor's degree: How can school conselors make a difference? (Research Brief no. 2.1) Center for School Counseling Outcome Research, University of Massachusetts-Amherst (http://www.umass.edu/schoolcounseling/PDFs/ResearchBrief2.1.pdf).

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