This study of first-year students in a Canadian university examined linguistic diversity and assessed associations with academic performance and reading abilities in English, the language of instruction. Among 68 students, 19 spoke English as a second language (secondary anglophones). Compared with 49 primary anglophones, these students'…

Research has shown consistently that first-generation college students are less prepared academically for college, have a higher risk for dropping out, and are less likely to obtain a degree. This study investigated the effect of first-generation students' participation in a first-year seminar (FYS) on academic achievement and persistence to…

This study explored the relationship between academic self-efficacy beliefs and the academic adjustment of first-generation and non-first-generation students. Findings supported the presence of a differential relationship that was generally weaker for first-generation students. However, findings also suggested first-generation students experienced…

This study explored college distance from home, a possible contributing factor of transfer behavior. Because the distance between a student's home and college has been found to be related negatively to social integration and positively to homesickness (i.e., Brooks & DuBois, 1995; Fisher, Murray, & Frazer, 1985; Tognoli, 2003), a…

This study examined the extent to which transitioning, first-year student-athletes engage in educationally sound activities in college. The sample included 147 revenue and nonrevenue first-year student-athletes who were surveyed at four large Division 1-A universities. Findings revealed that revenue and nonrevenue first-year student athletes…

This study explored the influence of orientation programming on the academic and social adjustment of newly admitted undergraduate students during the fall semester 2006. Participants in this study included first-years and transfers enrolled in a large, public, predominantly White institution in the Southeastern part of the United States. When…

Each year more students with career and technical education (CTE) backgrounds are transitioning to four-year institutions. This exploratory study investigated differences between CTE, community college transfers and native (nontransfer) students at four-year institutions in regard to how they balance their time and their academic engagement…

A large, suburban, Southeastern university conducted a multi-method study on the effectiveness of its common reader program in meeting multiple learning objectives. Data from approximately 700 respondents, all of whom were first-year students enrolled in 37 sections of the university's traditional first-year seminar course, revealed that the…

This study used a representative metropolitan sample to make longitudinal comparisons of college-bound and non-college-bound youth on incidents and predictors of heavy drinking. Respondents in the six-wave study were ages 13-16 at wave 1 and 18-21 at wave 6 (n's ranged from roughly 425-500 for different analyses). College/non-college comparisons…

A newly developed measure of the quality of students' involvement in cocurricular activities was used to assess the relationship between quality of involvement and adaptation during the transition to university. Results indicated that the higher the quality of students' involvement, the better their adjustment to university. The relationship…

Two studies reported here sought to determine if there was a significant effect on retention to the second year of college for students who participated in a first-year seminar compared to those who did not for students of high, middle, and low levels of pre-college academic preparation. The studies also examined possible interactive effects.…

The academic language needed for success in college or university courses can be challenging for nonnative English speakers (NNES). Institutions have implemented initiatives such as study partnerships, Supplementary Instruction, content-based language courses, and technology-based support to strengthen the English skills of NNES. This study…

Two studies compared a lecture-only with a group-activity instruction method to determine whether enhancing student involvement in an introductory class would increase learning and persistence in college. Exam grades, instructor evaluations, and student persistence were measured. It was predicted that first-year students in active-learning classes…

This study was part of a program evaluation that examined academic performance and retention differences between first-term students who completed a subject-based first-year experience (FYE) course (n = 381) and comparable first-term students (n = 332) who did not enroll in an FYE course. Actual grade point averages and re-enrollment rates across…

First-semester college students completed college transition courses which incorporated information on emotional, communication, and critical thinking skills. Their ability to understand, regulate, and harness emotions, and their retention rate, were higher than students completing a transition course lacking the emotional skills component. (EV)