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…

Surveyed over 25 years first-year students entering college undecided about a major. Entering students' responses were consistent in terms of their demographic characteristics, reasons for attending college, and levels of undecidedness. Their levels of anxiety about choosing a major increased only slightly. They did not differ significantly from a…

Created and tested the Senior Concerns Survey. An exploratory factor analysis revealed four areas of concern for college seniors: career related concerns, change and loss related concerns, graduate/professional school related concerns, and support related concerns. (EV)

Examined whether college graduation rates of students taking a first-year seminar differed significantly from a comparison group. Found a significantly greater graduation rate for those enrolled in the seminar. Also found that the effect of the seminar was greatest for students from middle to lower high school deciles and minimal for students from…

First-year students completed surveys on their study habits and grade predictions, which were compared to final course grades and retention, and then to enrollment status and cumulative grade point average (GPA) 8 years later. Found that graduates earned higher course grades and higher cumulative GPAs and more accurately predicted their course…

Tracked five cohorts of first-year students for 6 years to determine how many, by gender and race, were academically suspended, how many of those returned, and of those who returned, how many graduated. Found that a greater percentage of males than females and Black than White students were academically suspended. Minority males were the most…

This study investigated the effects of learning communities on the educational development of first-year college students at a large, urban, highly selective, research university. These communities, known as "clusters," comprised a year long sequence of theme-oriented courses that were team taught and that included interdisciplinary lectures and…

Researchers conducted a qualitative study of students' in- and out-of-class experiences in a residential learning community at a mid-sized public institution. Focus group interviews were conducted to explore (a) the outcomes of learning community membership from participants' point of view and (b) the connections between participants' reported…

A self-report questionnaire on academic achievement, birth order, and family structure; the Student Adaptation to College Questionnaire; the Parental Authority Questionnaire; and the Coping Humor Scale were administered to 257 first-year college students. Researchers examined the relationships among (a) authoritative parenting style, (b) family…

A 25-item self-report instrument was constructed to measure intrinsic motivation for academic work in the first-year student population. The instrument was based on a taxonomy of four types of intrinsic motivators: challenge, control, curiosity, and career outlook. The aim of this study was to provide reliability and validity evidence for the…

This correlation study assessed whether the psychological variables of college students' locus of control, self-efficacy, and achievement expectations strengthen the prediction of academic achievement beyond that of traditional cognitive measures of high school grade point average and scores on the ACT or SAT examination. The study used earned…

Examined the relationship between academic service quality and instructional quality in higher education. Found a high correlation between academic service and instructional quality, with academic service overlapping instructional quality in three dimensions: enthusiasm, organization, and rapport. (EV)

Examined the results of at-risk students' participation in a learning strategies tutorial concurrently with enrollment in general biology. Results were mixed, but refinement of the tutorial in a follow-up study showed positive changes in learning behavior and higher final grades than at-risk control group students. (EV)

Interviewed 28 first-year students enrolled in a first-year experience course at a southern metropolitan university to better understand students' attitudes regarding the institution, their coursework, and their lives outside of the classroom. Identified six major constructs: student involvement in academics, the purpose of education, importance…

Examined 91 first-year female students' perceptions of their pre-college and new collegiate friendships. Found that they have difficulty letting go of pre-college friendships and investing in new friendships. (EV)