High-Impact Practices, Peer Tutoring, and Underrepresented Student Retention

Higher education leaders are continually seeking strategies to boost student retention and persistence to graduation. One proven approach is engaging students in High-Impact Educational Practices (HIPs) – enriching experiences like learning communities, service learning, undergraduate research, and peer-to-peer programs. For underrepresented minority students, in particular, these practices can be game-changers. This article explores how encouraging underrepresented students to participate in HIPs such as peer tutoring leads to stronger academic outcomes, higher retention rates, and improved persistence to graduation, all while fostering a greater sense of belonging on campus. We’ll also highlight the dual benefits of peer tutoring – for both the tutor and the tutee – and conclude with steps administrators can take to harness these benefits on their own campuses.

Why High-Impact Practices Matter for Retention

High-Impact Practices have earned their name for a reason – they significantly enhance student engagement, learning, and ultimately college completion. Research has long shown that students who participate in HIPs are more likely to stay in school and graduate. For example, one retention study at Oberlin College found that among Black students, involvement in community service (a classic HIP) was the single factor most strongly correlated with graduating, out of 15 variables analyzed. In other words, student engagement outside the classroom was a powerful predictor of whether those students finished their degrees. Similarly, a learning community program in one study saw participant retention reach 80% versus 68% for the campus overall – a striking 12-point improvement attributable to that high-impact experience. Across higher ed, HIPs like these have been associated with higher year-to-year persistence and graduation odds, largely by keeping students more deeply engaged in their learning.

However, not all students have equal access or inclination to participate in these valuable experiences. An AAC&U report noted with concern that certain student groups remain underrepresented in many high-impact practices. Underrepresented minority (URM) students often participate at lower rates in study abroad, research, internships, or other HIP opportunities due to factors like limited awareness, financial barriers, or feeling that these programs “aren’t for people like me.” This participation gap means URM students may be missing out on proven benefits. And given that nationally, six-year graduation rates for Black and Indigenous students still hover around only 44–45% (compared to 62% for Hispanic students and even higher for White and Asian students), the stakes are high – we need strategies that help close these equity gaps in completion. That’s where targeted high-impact practices come in: when underrepresented students do get involved, the positive effects on their success are often even greater than for other groups. One analysis found that for non-white, educationally disadvantaged students, participation in a service-learning program led to significantly greater improvements in grades and lowered course failure rates than it did for white or more advantaged peers. In short, high-impact practices can be a potent lever for equity, giving students who face additional challenges the boost they need to thrive.

Closing Equity Gaps Through Peer Engagement

Among the various HIPs, peer-to-peer support programs – and peer tutoring in particular – stand out as accessible, cost-effective, and powerful tools to improve student outcomes. Peer tutoring involves students helping fellow students academically, whether through one-on-one tutoring, group study sessions, or mentoring relationships. For underrepresented students who may feel isolated or hesitant to seek help, peer tutoring offers support in a familiar, relatable context. Often the tutor is a fellow student who recently conquered the same course or challenge, making them a credible role model and ally. This dynamic can demystify academic help-seeking and normalize the idea that everyone struggles sometimes and can learn from each other.

Importantly, peer tutoring has a demonstrated track record of narrowing achievement gaps and improving course success rates. In one program study, researchers reported that a structured peer tutoring initiative not only shrunk the achievement gap between minority and majority students, but also cut the course failure rate by over 50% for those who attended tutoring. By reducing D/F/W grades and keeping more students on track academically, such efforts directly contribute to higher retention. As Dr. Chuck Allen of Temple University’s Fox School of Business highlighted, providing robust academic and social support (like tutoring) for students who may enter college underprepared is critical – peer tutoring increases retention by keeping students engaged with their coursework. The reason is clear: when students get timely help to master difficult material, they are far less likely to become overwhelmed, fail key classes, or drop out. Instead, they build confidence and momentum. Indeed, students who receive peer tutoring show improved immediate performance and gain confidence in their learning process – a critical factor in persisting to graduation. In essence, peer tutoring addresses small academic issues before they snowball into bigger ones, functioning as an early intervention that keeps students moving forward on the path to a degree.

Just as importantly, peer tutoring programs contribute to what researchers call social integration – a student’s sense of fitting in and belonging academically. For underrepresented students, forming peer connections through tutoring can counteract feelings of imposter syndrome or marginalization. A strong sense of belonging has been consistently linked to higher student engagement and lower dropout rates. Students who feel that their campus communities accept and value them are more resilient and less likely to leave when challenges arise. Peer tutoring, by its very nature, helps cultivate that belonging. It creates a space where students come together around shared academic goals, often forming supportive friendships in the process. In the words of one tutoring professional, peer support acts as a bridge, connecting students and fostering a shared experience that reminds them they are not alone in their struggles. Particularly for URM students who might not see themselves represented in faculty or majority-dominated programs, having a peer mentor or tutor with a similar background can be transformative. It sends a powerful message: “You belong here, and I’m here to help you succeed.” That boost of inclusion and affirmation can be the deciding factor in a student’s decision to stick it out through a tough semester rather than give up.

Peer Tutoring: A High-Impact “Win-Win” Practice

Peer tutoring is often called a “win-win” because both the student receiving help (the tutee) and the student providing help (the tutor) benefit tremendously. This makes it a uniquely powerful high-impact practice – essentially two HIP experiences wrapped into one activity. When a university invests in peer tutoring, they are not only lifting up struggling students but also providing enrichment and growth for the high-achieving students who serve as tutors.

Benefits for tutees: The advantages for the students who receive tutoring are clear. They get timely, personalized academic support in challenging courses, which leads to better understanding and improved grades. Tutees in peer programs often improve by one or two letter grades or more in the subject in which they receive help (as many campus tutoring centers’ assessments show). Course pass rates climb, and fewer students fall behind or end up on academic probation. As noted earlier, one study saw course failure rates for participants cut in half thanks to tutoring. These academic gains translate into higher retention: a student who passes that gatekeeper math or chemistry class on the second try with a tutor’s help is a student who stays in their major and re-enrolls next semester, rather than becoming a dropout statistic. Beyond grades, tutees gain confidence and effective study strategies, learning how to learn – skills that pay off in all their courses. Perhaps most importantly, tutoring relationships combat isolation. A tutee who might otherwise feel lost in a large lecture finds a supportive peer who understands their struggles. This connection reinforces that they do belong in the academic community, which increases the likelihood they will persevere through challenges. It’s no surprise, then, that tutoring and mentoring programs have been linked to higher semester-to-semester persistence, especially for first-generation and minority college students.

Benefits for tutors: The students who serve as tutors gain an entirely different but equally impactful set of benefits. By teaching others, tutors solidify their own knowledge and deepen their mastery of the material – there’s truth to the saying that “the best way to learn is to teach.” Tutors often report improved understanding in subjects they thought they had already mastered, as the act of explaining concepts to peers reveals any gaps in their own knowledge and strengthens their fundamentals. This can lead to better grades in advanced coursework for the tutors themselves. Furthermore, tutors develop essential skills and leadership experience that serve them beyond college. According to research on peer educators, tutors significantly improve their communication, teamwork, and problem-solving abilities. They learn to adapt their explanation style, empathize with others’ struggles, and collaborate towards a goal – all highly valued “soft skills” in the workplace. In fact, tutoring is a form of experiential learning that can be touted on a resume: it is a high-impact, skills-based experience that meaningfully enhances students’ resumes and prepares them for the workforce. Many tutors parlay their experience into campus leadership roles or even careers in education, mentoring, or management. On campus, tutors often become role models – visible champions of academic excellence and service. Especially when tutors come from underrepresented groups themselves, they send a powerful signal to other URM students of what is possible. Serving as a peer tutor also deepens the tutor’s own sense of belonging and purpose. Rather than feeling like just another face in the crowd, they become an integral part of the campus support ecosystem, someone who makes a difference. This boost in engagement can reflect back in their own retention and success; student tutors, by virtue of being highly involved and connected, are likely to persist and graduate at high rates. In short, peer tutoring is a two-way street of growth – it empowers the tutee to succeed academically and empowers the tutor with skills and confidence, creating a virtuous cycle of student success.

Benefits for campus community: When scaled, peer tutoring programs help foster an inclusive, supportive campus culture. They send the message that seeking help is normal and encouraged, that students are expected to work together and lift each other up. Over time, this can erode stigma around academic struggles and encourage more students (not just URMs) to engage in productive help-seeking. As more students become tutors or attend tutoring, intergroup connections increase – engineering majors might tutor athletes; seniors might help freshmen – building bridges across the community. This contributes to a campus climate where everyone feels invested in each other’s success. Both tutors and tutees grow together, as one program leader put it, and this dual benefit strengthens the community as a whole. The ripple effects can include improved overall retention rates and a reputation for strong student support, which is attractive in recruitment. In essence, peer tutoring operationalizes the ideal of students helping students, transforming it from a slogan into everyday reality on campus.

Investing in Student Success

Higher education administrators have a clear opportunity to improve both equity and excellence by expanding underrepresented students’ access to high-impact experiences like peer tutoring. The research is compelling and the benefits are tangible: increased retention and graduation rates, reduced achievement gaps, and a stronger sense of community on campus. By prioritizing peer tutoring (and other HIPs) for underrepresented minority students, institutions signal that every student’s success matters and that no one should navigate college alone. This is not just an aspirational diversity goal – it’s an evidence-based strategy to boost outcomes for students and institutions alike. And beyond the numbers, these programs transform lives: the first-generation student who goes from struggling in isolation to becoming a confident graduate, or the student tutor who discovers a passion for leadership and service along the way.

For university leaders looking to make an impact, the call to action is clear: invest in peer support and intentionally engage all students in these programs. Schedule a time to connect and explore how peer learning can elevate student success on your campus.