ERIC Number: ED547555
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2012
Pages: 107
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: 978-1-2674-6369-2
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Academic Transfer Shock and Social Integration: A Comparison of Outcomes for Traditional and Nontraditional Students Transferring from 2-Year to 4-Year Institutions
Strahn-Koller, Brooke Lindsey
ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, The University of Iowa
The purpose of this study was to explore whether traditional and nontraditional students who transferred from 2-year to 4-year institutions experienced differences in transfer shock, academic integration, and social integration. A substantial body of knowledge comparing transfer students to native students on transfer shock exists, while only a few qualitative studies have focused on how transfer students experience academic and social integration at the transfer institution. Further, the major studies examining transfer student behavior group all transfer students into a single category by the one thing they share in common-- transition experience. Due to the increasing numbers and diversity of transfer students it is important to examine how their unique characteristics influence transfer and subsequent integration into their new environment. The sample for this study was taken from the Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study (BPS: 04/09). The large, nationally representative data set was filtered to include only students who transferred from 2-year institutions to 4-year institutions, creating a much smaller sample of students. The main independent variable in the analyses was age. For this study traditional students were defined as those less than 24 years of age, while nontraditional students were those 24 years or older. Linear regression was used to examine whether traditional and nontraditional students experienced differences in transfer shock, level of academic integration, and level of social integration following transfer. The findings from this study suggest that there is no relationship between age and transfer experiences. Further research is necessary to determine whether the absence of a relationship truly exists or whether the small sample size in this analysis influenced the outcome. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]
Descriptors: College Transfer Students, Nontraditional Students, Comparative Analysis, Social Integration, Student Adjustment, Longitudinal Studies, Regression (Statistics), Age Differences, Student Experience
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Publication Type: Dissertations/Theses - Doctoral Dissertations
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Assessments and Surveys: Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A