Vincent Tinto
About Vincent Tinto
Speaking videos
Books by Vincent Tinto
“Completing College: Rethinking Institutional Action” (2012)
Even as the number of students attending college has more than doubled in the past forty years, it is still the case that nearly half of all college students in the United States will not complete their degree within six years. It is clear that much remains to be done toward improving student success. For more than twenty years, Vincent Tinto’s pathbreaking book Leaving College has been recognized as the definitive resource on student retention in higher education. Now, with Completing College, Tinto offers administrators a coherent framework with which to develop and implement programs to promote completion. Deftly distilling an enormous amount of research, Tinto identifies the essential conditions enabling students to succeed and continue on within institutions. Especially during the early years, he shows that students thrive in settings that pair high expectations for success with structured academic, social, and financial support, provide frequent feedback and assessments of their performance, and promote their active involvement with other students and faculty. And while these conditions may be worked on and met at different institutional levels, Tinto points to the classroom as the center of student education and life, and therefore the primary target for institutional action. Improving retention rates continues to be among the most widely studied fields in higher education, and Completing College carefully synthesizes the latest research and, most importantly, translates it into practical steps that administrators can take to enhance student success.
“Leaving College: Rethinking The Causes And Cures Of Student Attrition” (1987)
As enrollments continue to decline, student retention is increasingly vital to the survival of most colleges and universities. In the new edition of his widely acclaimed Leaving College, Vincent Tinto synthesizes far-ranging research on student attrition and on actions institutions can and should take to reduce it. The key to effective retention, Tinto demonstrates, is in a strong commitment to quality education and the building of a strong sense of inclusive educational and social community on campus. This completely revised and expanded edition incorporates the explosion of recent research and policy reports on why students leave higher education. Incorporating data only now available, Tinto applies his theory of student departure to the experiences of minority, adult, and graduate students, and to the situation facing commuting institutions and two-year colleges. He has revised his theory as well, giving new emphasis to the central importance of the classroom experience and to the role of multiple college communities. "This book appears to be the best compilation of ideas about understanding student departure from college written to date. . . . Tinto has pulled together a lavish variety of facts, findings based on empirical studies, theories, and institutional savvy to provide readers with valuable information that should help concerned members of the academic community better understand student departure."—John P. Bean, The Journal of Higher Education "This book is an excellent summary of previous research, a soundly sociological volume, and a very practical guide for action. It is an excellent blend of theory, research, and policy implications. It is also incredibly well written."—Theodore C. Wagenaar, Contemporary Sociology
At a glanceVincent Tinto
Recommended offer:
Get a custom quote for your event:
Get StartedBrowse Similar Speakers
Speaker Search is a marketplace of speakers designed for talent buyers. We do not represent or manage speakers; instead, we provide event planners with the most comprehensive resource to discover and book the right talent.