Student flow visualization

Universities aim at increasing student retention, with evidence‐based and data‐based governance of universities becoming best practice. In this context, managing large amounts of data in university management is a challenge. Sankey diagram visualizations of student flows per time unit (e.g. semesters) have been used as method for structuring but lacked the ability to go beyond program level. This study aims to advance this method by displaying multiple student lifecycles from school to doctorate, while including user‐based input. Data of 83,264 students enrolled into 140,593 programs between 2012/13 and 2022/23 with 657.615 distinct rows in the raw data were used. A self‐synchronizing web interface was provided, including filter and stratification variables. The diagrams could be mapped to students' lifecycles and extended over all degree levels and fields of study. Limitations were data availability and the lack of indicators for each stage of the student lifecycle. Improvements in the mapping are warranted.