Suspended Students: An Analysis of Suspension Length and Returning Semester GPA

The purpose of the study is to determine if length of suspension is related to academic success upon a student's return to college. This research stems from opposing views of members of a university academic appeals committee concerned about whether a suspended student should serve a suspension term of one semester, one year, or be granted immediate reentry. Academic records of 765 students who were suspended between the fall 1991 and the summer 1993 semesters and then were allowed to reenter the university within one year were examined. The results reveal that suspension length is unrelated to subsequent academic success.