The purpose of this Dissertation in Practice was to examine the perceptions and attitudes of faculty members at Florida State University - Panama City and then to further explore, through interviews, why the faculty hold a positive, neutral, or negative view of intrusive advising. The goal of this project was to understand the barriers for faculty…

Although students with specific learning disabilities are graduating from high school and being accepted into college at higher rates, research shows that the majority of these students are unsuccessful at the collegiate level (Alvarez-Perez et al., 2012; Connor, 2009; Gil, 2007; Lightfoot et al., 2018; Newman et al., 2011). This study is…

The purpose of this qualitative evaluation was to understand how the Ascent program, a bridge initiative at Plymouth State University, programmatically addressed institutional concerns regarding student retention and persistence during its three-year pilot phase, according to the perceptions of past participants, faculty, and administrators. The…

The post-great recession period (June of 2009 to February of 2020) was marked by a decline in state funding for higher education that further necessitated institutions to rely on tuition funding. Revenues from tuition are based not only on what institutions charge, but also how many students are charged. This tuition revenue dynamic makes…

University administrators, boards of trustees, and state and federal legislators spend significant time and effort focused on retention and graduation rates at American colleges and universities. The California State University (CSU) is no exception with its systemwide focus on Graduation Initiative 2025 which includes a commitment to eliminate…

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the self-talk of recently graduated nursing students and identify themes related to their self-motivated persistence. Twenty six participants from three cohorts who graduated from a small public university in New England completed narrative responses to an open-ended prompt. Using a grounded…

Women of color are historically underrepresented in STEM, specifically the field of engineering (National Science Board, National Science Foundation, 2019). In considering ways to assist in women of color's retention and persistence in engineering, it is necessary to recognize the role internships, a form of experiential education, at the…

The volume of articles, books, and studies about increasing the retention, persistence, and graduation of undergraduate college students is nothing short of prolific (Seidman, 2005). However, only modest gains in undergraduate graduation rates have been made nationally (Chen, 2012; Seidman, 2005). Six-year graduation rates at all four-year…

This study showcases stories of minority students participating in the Geopaths research program at California State University, Bakersfield. The study examined faculty mentorship and research activity variables to understand their influence on STEM recruitment and retention. Using a narrative analysis approach, the researcher documented the…

The Division of Student Engagement and Enrollment Services at Old Dominion University (ODU) submitted a Request for Assistance to examine the challenges sophomore students face that can lead to attrition. A doctoral research team conducted a exploratory, sequential, mixed-methods study consisting of a literature review, focus groups and interviews…

The purpose of the non-experimental quantitative research study was to identify if there is a significant difference between the types of budget model an institution utilizes, institutional size, and student enrollment, retention, and graduation rates. This study was to identify if there is significant difference between institutional size and the…

First-generation, low-income students currently complete higher education degrees at lower rates than their peers. It is well established that focusing on a students' academic and social integration during their first four semesters can aide in their degree persistence. This study aims to provide ways in which higher education professionals can…

Academic advising in higher education has been affected by many factors since its development at Harvard College in 1636 (Brubacher & Rudy, 1997). Currently in higher education, 33% of first year students do not return for their second year of academic work ("U.S. News and World Report," 2015); only 60% of students graduate college…

Summer bridge programs (SBPs) are a popular programmatic intervention of colleges and universities to assist students with the transition from high school to college and provide students with the academic and social tools they need to be successful. Despite their popularity, a survey of relevant literature indicated that bridge programs are not…

In the current environment for higher education, it has become critical for all of the departments and colleges within a university to become more aware of their place in the overall mission of the university. This is especially true of the academic library, which had relied upon a reputation as the "heart" of an academic institution for…