The authors examined the degree to which 1st-year college students endorse a career calling and how levels of calling differ across demographic variables and religiousness, life meaning, and life satisfaction. Forty-four percent of students believed that having a career calling was mostly or totally true of them, and 28% responded to searching for…

A sample of 3,570 first-year college students were surveyed regarding the factors they deemed most important to their long-term career choice. Students as a whole identified intrinsic interest, high salary, contributions to society, and prestige as their 4 most important work values. Additional analyses found men more likely to espouse extrinsic…

Although researchers have been interested in identifying characteristics of students using college counseling centers, research approaches have been varied and unsystematic. To investigate student use of the counseling center using the Clark-Trow subculture model, 582 University of Maryland college freshmen were administered a single item…

Two samples of entering college freshmen (at the University of Maryland, College Park) comprising two different generational cohorts (1976 cohort, n=1491; 1994 cohort, n=2516) were compared to determine the similarities and differences to attitudinal and behavioral items on a survey administered at a summer orientation program. The data were…

The University New Student Census was administered to 935 randomly selected students out of 3,388 incoming freshmen at the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP). This report offers findings concerning the general characteristics of the freshmen, their reasons for choosing UMCP. The survey also gathered data on their academic orientation…

Assessed how different levels of previous academic success related to varying outcomes, such as desire to pursue postgraduate education, higher career aspirations, and factors related to leaving school prematurely. Found that students who have been successful in the past are more likely to have more positive perceptions of their academic…

This study explores the use of a self-counseling device, Holland's Self-Directed Search (SDS), as a diagnostic tool in identifying students who have encountered difficulties in college but persist in their attendance when they may have been better suited to vocational training programs. Thirty-seven students in the University of Maryland Office of…

Results of the University New Student Census and the Mini Census completed by 1,984 freshmen entering the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP), are presented. The sex distribution of incoming freshmen was 51% male and 49% female. The majority of the sample was White (81%), while 9% were Black, 8% Asian, and 1% Hispanic. Thirty-seven percent…

A representative sample of 37 incoming Asian-American freshmen at the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP), reported their attitudes and perceptions on a number of personal and social issues. Forty-one percent attended UMCP because of its geographic location, and more than half came to learn skills directly applicable to a career.…

A representative sample of 987 entering freshmen (45 percent male and 55 percent female) at the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP), were surveyed regarding their attitudes and demographic characteristics during two-day summer orientation sessions. The typical UMCP freshman was from an upper-middle class home, earned at least a B average…

A survey of incoming African American freshmen (n=212) at a predominantly white institution found gender differences in why students attended college and planned to graduate, expectations about declaring a major and the difficulty of college coursework, and amount of involvement in extracurricular activities and campus groups. Many areas…

Results of the University New Student Census and the Mini Census completed by 1,655 freshmen entering the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP), are presented. Half of the incoming freshmen were male and half were female, and 84 percent were White, 9 percent were Black, 5 percent were Asian American, and 3 percent were Hispanic. Important…

A 79-item questionnaire was administered to a sample or 1,179 entering freshmen at the University of Maryland, College Park, in a survey of interracial differences. The sample was 86 percent white, 9 percent black, and 5 percent other minority groups (largely Hispanic and Asian American). White students were found to differ from minority students…

A sample of 725 out of 3,241 incoming freshmen to the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP) were administered the University New Student Census (UNSC) to determine a group profile for 1990. A selection of basic statistics included the following: (1) 53% of the incoming freshmen were male, and 71% were white; (2) approximately 20% had an A or…

The general background, views of the university, career and educational plans, academic skills, and personal development of incoming international students at the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP), were surveyed. Students were also given the opportunity to indicate their social and political attitudes and their specific concerns about…