The results showed that freshmen not participating in a triad were almost twice as likely to withdraw from a course.
Some results indicate a stronger positive effect among women and hispanics in the freshmen class.
A triad consists of a block of three disciplinary courses with required concurrent registration. A fourth required course, Freshman Seminar, is used to teach college survival skills as well as to draw together the material learned in the block of three courses. Enrollment in the English Composition course is limited to 25 students, and corresponds precisely to the enrollment in a section of Freshman Seminar. Previous studies at TAMU-CC have demonstrated that Freshman Seminars are effective in creating several important precursors for freshman retention, including creating nascent student communities, teaching study skills, and bringing freshman into close contact with faculty. However, no study before this one has been performed to determine what the effect of the Triad system is on student academic outcomes.