The purpose of this quantitative study was to investigate the meaningful impacts of FYS courses on student success, academic performance, and retention rates in a large urban community college. Using quantitative research methods, the researcher compared Fall 2022 and Spring 2023 institutional data of enrollment and retention to evaluate student…

The transition to college can be challenging for first-year students, impacting their academic performance and overall well-being. One strategy employed to ease the college transition is the first-year seminar, designed to introduce students to academic expectations, build social connections, develop self-management skills, and support students'…

This qualitative case study examined the efficacy of one university's academic interventions in support of conditionally admitted (CA) students during the COVID-19 pandemic. The objective was to gain insights into how academic interventions changed for CA students and how the students used academic interventions during COVID-19 at one four-year…

First-year seminar courses have become increasingly popular for colleges and universities as they are expected to help aid in the transition to college and help students persist to graduation (Culver & Bowman, 2020). Utilizing pre-existing data from the Office of Institutional Research Effectiveness and Planning (IREP), the…

The purpose of this quantitative causal-comparative study was to examine to what extent a difference exists in first year experience (FYE) pass rate and persistence of summer to fall enrollment based on utility value intervention (UVI) participation among college students enrolled in FYE classes at a community college in the Midwest United States.…

Freshman seminar courses aim to address dropout rates, college achievement, increase persistence rates, and student adjustment in approximately 94% of colleges and universities in America. First-generation college students make up nearly a third of higher education students and are likelier to drop out of college within the first 2-years of…

Problem: Amongst the highest at-risk student populations are minority students (students of color), first-generation college students, students from low-socioeconomic status, students experiencing financial challenges, and those who enter college academically underprepared. Furthermore, studies have found a significant gap in the educational…

As state budgets are continuously tightened, and state dollars dwindle to cover only the bare necessities, resources must be carefully examined and utilized to increase efficiency and effectiveness; one such area in which higher education institutions must concentrate on allocating and streamlining resources is to increase the retention and…

Colleges implement success courses to improve student outcomes. Since expanding its curriculum to include nine success courses, Illinois Eastern Community Colleges (IECC)--a multi-college community college district in rural, southeastern Illinois--has not determined the efficacy of these courses on student success. The purpose of this study was to…

This dissertation evaluated the efficacy and effectiveness of a first-year freshman seminar course designed to improve self-regulated learning skills and bolster academic success. First-year seminars (FYS) are designed to help at-risk students (as indexed by their admissions criteria) gain the learning and motivational skills they need to succeed…

This study examined how students perceive the impact of a mandatory first-year seminar course on their success and persistence at a 2-year institution. Specifically, the study focused on the influence of the course curriculum and objectives to promote success and perseverance and how the campus community supports student success and persistence.…

Higher education institutions continue to place a strong emphasis on helping students successfully complete college. Currently, a limited amount of research supports teaching academic resilience as a skill in the higher education setting. In addition, little is known about using first-year experience (FYE) courses as a platform for teaching…

First-year students face a number of problems in adjusting to college and university life. This study investigated the academic achievement of students who had successfully completed freshman orientation through a first-year experience program. The term "first-year experience" will be used interchangeably with "first-year…

The volume of transfer students across college and university campuses in the United States continues to rise; however, institutions continue to struggle with identifying and applying best practices that encourage these students to earn their baccalaureate degree at rates comparable to their non-transferring peers. Prior research suggests many…

The relationship between online learning readiness and academic performance is inconclusive. There is consensus that online learning readiness has a relationship with academic performance, but the way the three major dimensions of online learning readiness in self-directed learning, technology self-efficacy, and communication-self-efficacy impact…