Survival Analysis of Faculty Retention Data: How Long Do They Stay? AIR 1997 Annual Forum Paper.

This study applied survival analysis methodology to faculty retention data in order to examine ways to measure faculty retention and determine whether men and women have different "survival times." The study at a selective, private liberal arts college first used college catalogs to identify 339 full-time tenure-track faculty who had begun working in 1960 through 1994 and to determine their final year at the college. Variables included Ph.D. or "All But Dissertation" (A.B.D.) status when hired, year of Ph.D., entry rank, year of full-time tenure-track status, and tenure status upon entry. Application of the survival analysis techniques indicated that faculty who arrived in the earlier years (1960s and 1970s) had much lower durations than faculty who arrived later. Comparison of male and female retention rates indicated that female retention rates were essentially the same as male rates. Details of the methodology and its limitations are discussed. Twelve tables of data are appended. (Contains 14 references.) (JLS)