KEY Careers: Increasing Retention and Graduation Rates with Career Interventions

The purpose of the study was to investigate how promoting participation in KEY Careers, a career intervention program available to all incoming matriculates, influenced 1-year retention and 4-year graduation rates compared to nonparticipants at a singular institution. Archival data of 14,099 matriculates from the 2011–2014 freshman fall cohorts were utilized to examine the significance of a career intervention program on 1-year retention and 4-year graduation rates for various student demographics through an analysis of covariance. The results of this study suggest student participation in a career intervention program causes a statistically significant increase in 1-year retention and 4-year graduation rates regardless of gender or race. The discussion of this study is focused on why vocational identity development is significant at the beginning of the college experience and includes suggestions for how university administration can proactively infuse career development into their practices to benefit students of all backgrounds.