A Total Quality Management (TQM) approach to enforcing an admissions rule was taken in one master's degree program in lieu of punishing students for infraction. Prevention became possible only after TQM techniques revealed the causes of rule violation. Follow-up shows no new rule infractions for several academic terms. (MSE)

A study using focus groups and interviews of 132 traditional and nontraditional college students examined factors and experiences in the transition from work or high school to college. It looked at differences between traditional and first-generation college students; the role of family, high school friendships, and peers; and developmental…

The design and use of performance indicators for documenting quality of higher education in North America and Europe is discussed, and the indicators and assessment initiatives are compared in terms of nine dimensions. Implications of the results for institutional researchers and for the higher education community are examined. (MSE)

A study of University of Tennessee, Knoxville, graduates (n=828) at time of graduation and after two years found job satisfaction significantly positively correlated with ratings of the college experience. Women were less satisfied with their pay than were men but not more dissatisfied with the work or more likely to be looking for another job.…

Methodology and results of a study of administrative costs and structures at Iowa State University are summarized. Indicators of administrative efficiency are examined, including those related to organization, costs, salaries, and intensity of administrative functions. Some comparisons with peer institutions or to other units within the same…

A study of 418 academically underprepared college students found a positive correlation between students' perceptions of their career decision-making self-efficacy and their overall social and academic adjustment to the academic environment. Further research into career decision-making self-efficacy is recommended, particularly for intervention to…

Attributional retraining, the restructuring of an individual's explanations for events in his environment, is proposed as one method of enhancing college student motivation and achievement, particularly for high-risk students. Drawing on previous research and theory, the most promising strategies for using attributional retraining with this…

A study with 894 college faculty investigated the effects of certain stress variables on different kinds of faculty research activity; psychological and organizational variables thought to moderate stress; and the effects of stressors and moderators for gender, institution type, and discipline (humanities, social sciences, natural sciences)…

A study used available data to develop a profile of non-tenure-track college faculty (n=132) and compare it with a similarly derived profile of untenured but tenure-track faculty (n=587). The research explored the relationship between employment status and selected demographic, career orientation, career circumstance, and work environment…

A model to assess the relationships between student characteristics (especially student effort), perceived college environments, student behavior, and student achievement gains was evaluated through examination of responses of 2,271 students on the College Student Experiences Questionnaire. Academic and social effort expended were the principal…

Four cohorts of new women and minority faculty were studied to investigate the role that immersion in campus activities and resources plays in career success. The model applied used unconventional methods of interviewing and suggests specific interventions to avoid career difficulties. Women and minorities tended to be less effectively immersed…

A study examined the growth and development of graduate students holding teaching assistantships and research assistantships and compared it with that of nonassistants. In general, teaching assistantships contributed less to student professional development than did research assistantships. Students who had experienced both types of assistantships…

A study investigated differences in epistemological beliefs among junior college (n=116) and university (n=76) students and among technology and social science majors. Other student demographic and background variables were considered. Results suggest colleges should consider epistemological beliefs as factors in academic achievement, attrition,…

A study at the University of Colorado compared minority (n=73) and white (n=122) faculty perceptions of employment/workplace issues and minority affairs. Minority faculty were dissatisfied with certain contexts in the institution and felt excluded. Interactions of race and gender were also examined. (Author/MSE)

A study investigated the factors influencing students' decisions about attending a college to which they had been admitted. Logit analysis confirmed gravity model predictions that geographic distance and student ability would most influence the enrollment decision and found other variables, although affecting earlier stages of decision making, did…