As with myself ocasionally, most students need a sounding board at times. Just getting it all out will often release the stress and in many cases, the answer(s) will appear "out of the blue". Knowing when to get a professional involved is important, as we are not trained counsellors.

Many students have zero support from anyone else. They chose to come to school to improve their lot in life, and money, the amount of time out of the classroom required to excell in class, a semblance of a social life, etc., conspire to their loss of focus. A staff member who is perceptive will catch a number of these students and many times an empathetic ear is all it takes to regain focus. Of course, this is an ongoing process.

Retention is not something that is always the institution's fault. As stated, many outside factors affect the student, and despite our best efforts, we lose some. However, if the institution pratices "truth in advertising" and then lives up to it with each interaction with the student, the student is generally content. Inconsistencies will turn the student off, and all members of the staff should communicate with each other so that they stay on the same page, so to speak. I have conduted my own informal polls over the years,and to a man,the number one complaint is inconsistency.