Abstract:
This research investigated the impact of academic advising on student retention in distance learning at
the University of Cape Coast, Ghana. Explanatory sequential mixed methods design was adopted for
the study. The multistage sampling technique was used to sample 727 student participants from a
sampling frame of 8731. Four academic advisors and three counsellors at the College of Distance were
purposively selected for the study. Further, 16 students who had dropped out from the college were
sampled using the snowball sampling technique. A researcher-self constructed questionnaire and a
semi-structured interview guide were used to collect data. Quantitative data were analysed using
descriptive and inferential statistics. Analyses of qualitative data were done using Merriam analytical
coding process. At an alpha level of .05 academic advising made a non-significant contribution to
prediction (p = .10) which implies that academic advising is not a significant predictor of student
retention in distance learning. The study concluded by recommending that academic advisory services
should be provided in a practical manner to address the specific needs of students at the College of
Distance Education of the University of Cape Coast.
