This study is concerned with the fact that commuter students persist at a lower rate than their residential peers. As colleges and universities seek to increase educational attainment rates, understanding why commuter students struggle with retention is important. Research shows sense of belonging can positively affect intention to persist. As…

The focus of this study is on commuter students in higher education. Commuter students make up a majority of today's college campuses so focusing on their success is key to running a successful institution. Commuter students are not getting involved in campus activities and rarely utilizing campus resources. Commuter students can be described as…

The purpose of the current study was to identify if positive affect, resilience, and student type were predictors of subjective happiness in undergraduate commuter and non-commuter students. Since there is limited research on the population of commuter students, the current study added to the literature. Using a quantitative methodology, 314…

Prior literature on transborder ("transfronterizos," "transfronteriz@s," or "transfronterizx") students in the Mexico-United States border region focuses predominantly on United States citizens and the San Diego-Tijuana region. This phenomenological study focuses on Mexican citizen international students, who live in…

University commuter students are typically less engaged outside the classroom than their residential counterparts, being less likely to participate in extracurricular activities and university-sponsored events. This lack of engagement can lead to lower rates of persistence and retention. At the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg, a small,…

Institutions of higher education must better understand and meet the needs of commuter students, so commuters are more likely to persist and graduate. The purpose of this study was to identify the specific factors that influence a commuter student's decision to remain enrolled by answering two questions: (1) What is the lived experience of a…

At the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg, commuter students make up the majority of the currently enrolled student population. The majority population has expressed their dissatisfaction about co-curricular and social activities and a diminished sense of belonging and inclusion. The focus of this dissertation is on the Greensburg Experiences…

The purpose of this study was to examine if types of housing accommodations impacted grade point average and degree attainment for incoming migrant freshman students participating in a College Assistance Migrant Program at a public, four-year university in south Texas. For the purposes of this study, housing accommodations refers to students…

This mixed methods action research study was conducted at a women's, private, liberal arts university in the United States with the purpose to create an opportunity for the Latina female first-generations college students (LFFGCS) to; build a sense of belonging and community, and provide them with more resources on a variety of financial topics in…

The purpose of this non-experimental, quantitative correlational study was to investigate whether any significant relationships existed between one-way student commute distance and retention for first-time, community college freshmen. Additional student success metrics such as three-year graduation rates, enrollment status, credit hours attempted…

The purpose of this photovoice constructivist grounded theory study is to illustrate the intersections and developmental processes of a transborder identity among Transfronterizx students in postsecondary and higher education institutions at the San Diego-Tijuana border region by examining the psychosocial and cognitive-structural factors that…

Despite the abundant amount of studies about bachelor's degree completion in higher education, little research paid attention to the characteristics of students attending non-residential institutions, given that this type of college accounts for approximately half of all the higher education institutions in the United States. Using student records…

The purpose of this action research study was to increase the success of commuter students at my institution by creating an on-campus space designed to increase students' sense of community and meet their practical needs. Scholarly research by Scheriner (2010b) on social connectedness and Lounsbury and DeNeui (1996) on collegiate psychological…

In higher education, sense of belonging has been linked to improved outcomes such as retention and academic achievement (e,g., Pittman & Richmond, 2007). Previous research has also identified participation in learning communities and campus residency as interventions which improve sense of belonging for students in this context (e.g., Solanki…

Subsidized transit policy is a strategy used to lessen environmental impacts and increase institutional accessibility in higher education. Program funding to support this subsidized transit policy can vary between institutions. This research focuses on the geographic analysis of Eco Pass, a student led initiative implemented in the Foothill De…