First-Year Student Engagement

First they reveal that there is not enough information available for prospective students to research possible colleges to decide if that institution would be beneficial for them (Pg.220, Para.1). They proceed to document several efforts that attempt to solve this problem, such as the College Scorecard and PayScale college rankings (Pg. 220, Para.3). However they claim that these efforts are not enough and more must be done. The authors insist that in addition to providing information, students need assistance with increasing the ROI of their college education. They suggest that colleges should work to ensure that more of their students graduate (Pg.221, Para. 3). Also, students should have help discovering how much financial aid they are eligible for, as they often underestimate the amount they could earn (Pg. 122, Para. 2). Owen and Sawhill reveal that future college students are often confused when it comes to choosing an institution and finding help to graduate and pay tuition. Therefore they use pathos to connect with their reader’s compassion for these students. Suggestions on how to assist these students are offered. Overall the argument is strengthened as the authors unveil certain needs of students through

Are you aware that at least forty percent of the United States is made up of first-generation students? (Earl, 1987.) Being given the label “first-generation,” by definition, means that a student is the first in his or her family to attend and finish college with a college degree. In Hicks 2006 study, he compared the educational barriers of first-generation students to those non-first-generation students. As a result, Hicks found out the first-generation students had different expectations of college, poor academic abilities, lack of social skills, low self-esteem, and more financial restrictions (Hicks, 2003; Thayer, 2000). There are many challenges that first-generation students face in pursuit of a college degree: academic challenges,

According to Kaplan (2013), students’ motivation levels are easily influenced through extrinsic forces in schools. Such forces can be attributed to simple events such as prom and graduate night. It is imperative to think of various solutions to this motivational issue because students who are planning on attending a four-year postsecondary institution might be at risk on losing their admission. Furthermore, losing their admission at this stage can signify no other option than attending a community college. It is important to note that though there are plenty of benefits in attending a community college this paper will focus only on students who plan on attending a four-year postsecondary

Students today have been raised to think that college is just the next step in life after high school. Decades ago,going to college was a huge achievement and not many people enrolled. Today, however it is almost expected that you go to college. The purpose of college has been changing over the years. Students and professors have lost sight of what to get out a college education. Gary Gutting explains in his article, “What is College for?” that students are losing passion for higher education. He also believes that professors are not realizing what their true job really is, and are not doing the necessary procedures to help their students succeed. “In On the Uses of a Liberal Education”, Mark Edmundson shares similar ideas, and gives a first person point of view of Gutting’s ideas about the quality of the college experience. Mark Edmundson would agree with Gary Gutting’s claims that the quality of colleges is declining and is negatively affecting the students and faculty members.

Thus, investigating what caused minority students to persist in college beyond their freshmen year provided answers as to how the selected universities

Post-secondary school students enrolled in and actively pursuing a degree or other full-time course of study at an accredited post-secondary educational institution

As a resident of this town and part of this advisory board, I envision a more accomplished yet affordable education for our future generation. As a result, I suggest President Dugan to provide free metro cards to low income students who are registered full time at St. Francis College. Research shows that our current generation do not enroll themselves in college right after high school for several reasons, and one of them being losing their transportation resources.

In addition, research establishes that at two-year colleges, integration has a different influence on the predictive ability of the model (Pascarella & Chapman, 1983). Academic integration is a much greater effect than social integration. A study by Halpin examined integration on freshmen at a community college and determined that integration projected persistence, therefore finding value in Tinto’s model (Halpin, 1990). Additionally, Halpin hypothesized that perhaps students are already integrated into the college community and do not require to fit in an unknown dormitory or campus setting. This refutes critiques of the unsuitability of Tinto’s model to nontraditional students, despite the fact Tinto just proposed to relate the model

To increase the likelihood that students will have the necessary social capital to enroll in college, programs typically take a multi-pronged approach to provide students with the missing supports that will help them develop a college-going mindset. Consistent with those goals, college readiness programs generally offer a series of comprehensive services, such as tutoring, financial literacy classes, coaching, college awareness and exposure, and cultural enrichment. Le et al. (2016), noted that factors associated with limited college participation include: inadequate academic preparation for college, lack of knowledge about financial aid, limited access to information about the college application and limited social support.

A student’s first-year of college is arguably one of the most critical years in a student’s collegiate career. When students perform well in their first-year of college, they are significantly more likely to continue towards and earn their degree. Therefore, it is especially important that higher education officials analyze ways to improve upon a student’s initial college experience. Kuh, Cruce, Shoup, Kinzie, and Gonyea (2008) analyzed the relationships between student engagement and academic achievement and persistence among first-year students. Using ACT/SAT score reports, the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE), and student academic and financial aid information, researchers sought to determine the contributing factors of first-year grade-point average (GPA). Although students who had higher ACT/SAT scores and spent more time studying had higher GPAs, involvement within the college had a small effect on first-year GPA, especially for students with lower levels of academic achievement. Additionally, students who were more involved were significantly more likely to continue into their second-year of college, particularly African-American students. It is essential to garner more research on this topic because this study only used the relatively brief NSSE to measure engagement. Also, the findings in this study may not reflect the circumstances at other

The first year of college is the most important year because majority of the basic knowledge and cognitive skills are developed during this year (Zhou, Y., Ou, C., Zhao, Z., Wan, C., Guo, C., Li, L., & Chen, P. 2014, June 07). The theory of student involvement

Programs should be realistic about their goals because the argument is made that significant progress in academic support is difficult to achieve in only a few months (Kezar, 2000). Studies show that students in retention programs perform better than those who are not met with the same opportunity (Kezar, 2000). The Sumer-Bridge-University of California at Berkley provides proof to the success of these programs as it has demonstrated that bridge students there have a higher two-year retention rate than their counterparts despite having lower SAT scores than those who have not participated in the program (Ohland & Crockett, 2002). It is cautioned that these programs, while providing a jump start for success, should be met with ongoing support that surpasses the five to six weeks of summer preparation (Bradley, 2012). Some colleges have found implementation of a mandatory freshman orientation class for all incoming students beneficial, following participation in summer activities (Bradley, 2012).

Upon identifying programs available on various college campuses as they relate to first year students; it has become noticeable that university leaders are concerned with the retention of students within their first and second year of college. Therefore many universities have developed programs that are focused on the success of the freshman student and ensuring that group of students’ matriculations throughout their degree programs. As quoted in “The Dynamics of Organization in Higher Education (Kuh, 1996) “the frequent and increasingly predictable accusation that institutions of higher education operate in “silos” is based on their various schools, colleges, and athletic programs operating in parallel with one another, more focused on promoting than on adhering to or accomplishing broader institutional

Pascarella and Terenzini (1983) generated the integrating summary scales to measure the two variables social and academic integration, distinguished by Tinto’s (1975) model of college student persistence. This instruments has been known as one of the most fruitful and valid tools to assess academic and social integration, the major dimensions of Tinto’s (1975, 1987, and 1993) student departure model, respecting to interactions among faculty, peers, and the university environment (Andreatta, 1998; Beard, 1998; Bers & Smith, 1991; Burns, 1994; Downing, 2005; English, 1993; Ferrer, 1997; Fox, 1984; French & Oakes, 2004; Hanna, 1997; Howell, 1999; Lavine, 1992; Robinson, 2003; Ross, 1992; Schutt, 1996; Thomas, 1994).

One of the biggest movements that is beginning to be implemented in many college campuses is that of the First Year Experience (FYE) program. Orientation can go only so far in making these first year students feel connected. Many institutions now build into the curriculum first-year seminars or other programs that bring small groups of students together with faculty or staff on a regular basis. These programs bring together aspects of both the academic and student affairs worlds. First Year Experience programs vary from campus to campus, but many of the characteristics that each share are tied to the common goal of helping those new freshmen feel at home and better adjusted to the expectations that are associated with being a college student.