The industry of higher education has consistently grappled with the issue of student persistence and institutional retention efforts due to the failure to improve student completion rates. Nationwide, only four out of every ten students graduate. According to the Completions Report by the National Center for Education Statistics, between 2006 and 2013 the graduation rate for public two-year colleges varied between 32% and 42% (Shapiro et al., 2019). Furthermore, according to the National Center for Education Statistics, for the cohort year of 2016, 17.2 % of students enrolled at public two-year institutions graduated on time while 30% graduated within 150% of normal time and 35.4 graduated within 200%. Utilizing data from a cohort of 12,966 newly enrolled students from the fall, 2017 academic session, this secondary data analysis study aimed to ascertain if a relationship existed between the participation in the First Year Experience (FYE) Program with or without an included Student Life Skills (SLS) course and student academic outcomes as measured by credits and GPA. The study found that participation in the FYE with SLS course offered by student affairs had a significant impact on academic outcomes. However, not all populations under study enjoyed an outcome with sufficient significance to render the results actionable for student types and ethnicities. In addition, there was a significant difference in academic outcomes for students based on Pell status suggesting the need to examine external factors impacting academic performance. This study contributes to the body of knowledge needed to address the problem of student retention rate by providing greater clarity on the benefits of a First-Year Experience Program with an emphasis on the cumulative engagement arising from attending a Student Life Skills course and/or specific FYE programming. It is suggested that Higher Education administrators consider the inclusion of program faculty in the First-year Engagement Program to bridge a student's occupational or academic interest to the general education curriculum. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]