Most of the research on the effects of college on students that examines the influences of institutional characteristics--what Pascarella and Terenzini ("How college affects students: Findings and insights from twenty years of research". San Francisco: Jossey-Bass 1991) called "between-college" effects--indicate that the descriptors typically used…

A study examined whether students' perceptions of their growth are related to their college experiences (after controlling for their precollege characteristics), whether the amount of development varies over the first three years of college, and whether the influences perceived in personal development vary from one year to another. (Author/MLW)

The relationship between the frequency of college students' informal nonclassroom contact with faculty for each of six purposes and their generalized perceptions of instructional quality were assessed. The frequency of contacts for discussing intellectual or course-related matters made statistically significant contributions in predicting…

Salient findings of six studies assessing the construct validity of Tinto's model of college student attrition are described. The studies are based on three independent data collections over a three-year period and indicate the students' informal contacts with faculty are consistently related to subsequent persistence/withdrawal decisions.…

A study with 210 college freshmen investigated the effect of 3 aspects of the college experience (curricular exposure, formal classroom and instructional experiences, and out-of-class experiences). Results suggest that both classroom/instructional and out-of-class experiences make positive, statistically significant, unique contributions to gains…

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…

Conceptual and methodological recommendations for enhancing research on the influences of college on students are offered, including isolating net college effects, studying the timing of change, estimating college effect sizes, examining direct and conditional effects, and the potential benefits of qualitative approaches. Areas for future inquiry…

Comparison of 825 first-generation college students and 1,860 traditional college students in 23 diverse institutions after completion of 1 year found first-generation students differed from others in both entering characteristics and college experiences. Although traditional students made greater net gains in reading, the groups gained similarly…