Influential factors in recruitment and retention of minority students in a community college

To alleviate the problem of underrepresentation of minorities in allied health professions, colleges are encouraged to target and strengthen their recruitment and retention programs. The two-year college is often cited as the major entry point into higher education for minority students. To determine effective ways in which retention and recruitment programs could be enhanced in two-year colleges, the most influential and least influential factors were determined through a survey of successful minority graduates of allied health programs in a large two-year college. Certain results contradict what generally has been associated with successful recruitment and retention of minorities. Findings suggest that colleges begin closely examining what is occurring within their respective institutions to determine which factors could be having a positive, as well as negative, impact upon recruitment and retention of minorities. This study also suggests that student perception could be a valuable source of information.