This study aimed to understand the barriers that two-year college students face that prevent graduation and the possible intervention program to assist them with overcoming these barriers. The perceptions of academic advisors working at a two-year college were gained in the areas of barriers related to environmental factors, social integration,…

Investigating crimes on college campuses is a prevalent phenomenon that often requires student cooperation with campus police. Using the procedural justice theory's process-based approach, this applied research examined the likelihood of students reporting campus crime based on their perceived legitimacy of campus police and whether the student's…

Black women face unique challenges based on the intersection of multiple marginalized identities often referred to as the simultaneity of oppression or gendered racism. The purpose of this qualitative study is to expand gendered racial microaggression research by examining the experiences of Black female graduate students at colleges and…

Asian Americans (AA) are one of the most rapidly growing populations in higher education, increasing by 36% since 2010. AA students are considered the model minority group who are generally academically successful. However, recent studies by Vang (2016) and Nguyen (2018) have disaggregated data and found while many Asian immigrants came to the…

The purpose of this phenomenological narrative study was to explore the BIPOC graduate student experience and factors impacting mental health and well-being. The researcher interviewed 10 BIPOC graduate students to explore how the graduate student experience affects their mental health and overall well-being. Additionally, the study explored…

Roughly 80% of community college students indicate that they intend to transfer to a four-year institution, 30% of those students eventually transfer, and 13% of those students persist to graduate with a baccalaureate degree. There has been previous research on transfer students and on first generation students, but the intersection of…

Poverty impacts the holistic wellness and care of single mothers, and single-mother families are at higher risk of poverty than other household types. College is a vehicle for academic growth and development, fostering opportunities for spiritual formation. This phenomenological qualitative study investigated the impact of Christian spiritual…

The campus built environment is an omnipresent force at an institution of higher education. That force is influential during a student's transition into the post-secondary system. Literature on this subject suggests that understandings of the relationship between the campus built environment and the student experience are limited and demand…

This dissertation used grounded theory methodology to explore the experiences of gender-diverse students in postgraduate education. Thus, the question was asked, "What are the co-curricular and curricular experiences of TGNC students in graduate and professional education programs, and how do they experience a gender-affirming climate for…

The prevalence of whiteness at selective Historically White Institutions (HWIs) creates hostile and oppressive environments for Latinx/a/o students. Consequently, Latinx/a/o students face racialized barriers that impact their ability to thrive at these institutions. Yet, despite these racialized barriers, Latinx/a/o students have found ways to…

The current study utilized a social learning and achievement goal theory framework to examine and explicate the relationship between multidimensional perfectionism and psychological distress, and the moderating effect of two types of motivational climate among Division I-III student-athletes. Results indicated nonsignificant interaction effects…

This study examined the journeys of first-year undergraduate theological students during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic to figure out what, if anything, aided the students in completing their coursework with passing grades. COVID-19 has impacted organizations and individuals around the world, prompting changes to ensure that things kept…

As an institution that aims to create more access to higher education by removing barriers to entry, the California Community College (CCC) system supports what is often described as "nontraditional" students (i.e., first-generation and systems-impacted students), but also of most importance to this study, Students of Color (Knoell,…

This qualitative phenomenological inquiry aimed to explore the experiential dimensions of first-year, first-semester college students' perceptions of their college readiness from high school to a junior college in Belize. Employing Leedy and Ormrod's (2016) methodology for data analysis, the researcher engaged a purposeful sample of 30 first-year,…

Belonging is an essential human need, regardless of whether or not one has a disability, and has been found to positively impact one's physical and mental health. Feelings of belonging for college students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) have largely been unexplored in research. Using the 10 Dimensions of Belonging…