Studies have shown that students' positive experience during their first year in college plays a significant role in their success in terms of persistence and satisfaction. That premise has been the motivation for the development of a first-year connection course by the Department of Chemical Engineering at Tennessee Tech University. Recent implementation of a methodology to help students develop a vision of their future within the chemical engineering profession is described, and the results in terms of retention and progression from first-year to second-year are presented and analyzed.