The use of experiential learning styles to predict attrition from a limited-residency information systems graduate program

Due to the expected growth of over 15% in the information systems industry between 2012 and 2022, many individuals desiring to work in academia, or as computer or information research scientists, are returning to graduate school to pursue a doctoral degree in information systems. Because of the need to balance their professional and academic lives, many returning students are electing to attend online or limited-residency programs. While traditional on-campus doctoral programs experience an attrition rate of approximately 50%, the drop-out rate from non-traditional programs may reach as high as 70%. It is higher education’s responsibility to ensure that students are offered the best opportunity for success in their educational endeavors by creating learning environments that support the needs of all students. To inform that effort, this study investigated the relationship between doctoral students’ experiential learning styles and success in a limited-residency information systems program. The results call for a more thorough investigation of this construct, and others, across disciplines and at different levels of education.