The Center for First Generation College Student Success (2020) defined first generation college students (FGCS) as, "an undergraduate student whose parents do not have a bachelor's or higher degree." FGCS have to navigate many aspects of college without parent(s) who have experienced college themselves. After applying and being accepted…

For years past higher education institutions were male dominant in enrollment over females. Current enrollment trends show there is a decline of male completion and females are now showing higher graduation rate completion. Research shows prevailing reasons for students sustaining enrollment and reasons for attrition. An analysis was conducted of…

This study uses data from the 2018 "Student Experience in the Research University" (SERU) Survey of undergraduate degree-seeking students to develop a profile of an honors student. Nineteen research universities participated in the 2018 SERU Survey, with a resulting sample size of almost 119,000 undergraduate students, of whom 15,280…

This set of Web Tables is the fourth in a series of four that together provide key information about 2011-12 first-time postsecondary students' characteristics and their 6-year retention, persistence, attainment, withdrawal, stopout, and transfer rates. The series draws on data collected for the 2012/17 Beginning Postsecondary Students…

Evidence of inefficient course-taking patterns at community colleges has spurred policy conversations about how to ensure effective course sequences. Structural reforms, like guided pathways, seek to reduce major switching as a means to streamline student course taking and eliminate unnecessary credits. By placing students into broad fields of…

This set of Web Tables is the second in a series of four that together provide key information about 2011-12 first-time postsecondary students' characteristics and their 6-year retention, persistence, attainment, withdrawal, stopout, and transfer rates. The series draws on data collected for the 2012/17 Beginning Postsecondary Students…

This set of Web Tables is the third in a series of four that together provide key information about 2011-12 first-time postsecondary students' characteristics and their 6-year retention, persistence, attainment, withdrawal, stopout, and transfer rates. The series draws on data collected for the 2012/17 Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal…

This set of Web Tables is the fourth in a series of four that together provide key information about 2011-12 first-time postsecondary students' characteristics and their 6-year retention, persistence, attainment, withdrawal, stopout, and transfer rates. The series draws on data collected for the 2012/17 Beginning Postsecondary Students…

Increasingly, colleges and universities across the country are adopting "guided pathways" reforms to create clearly defined, educationally coherent pathways into and through programs of study for their students. Facilitated by built-in supports, the goal of guided pathways is to increase learning and graduation rates, and to help more…

This study explores the lived experiences of 10 students entering college from rural Oregon communities. Using narrative inquiry, the author examines students' transition, common experiences, and enrollment barriers. Resulting themes include: (a) unexpected emotional and social transition, (b) motivations for enrolling, (c) lack of social and…

This set of Web Tables is the first in a series of four that together provide key information about 2011-12 first-time postsecondary students' characteristics and their 6-year retention, persistence, attainment, withdrawal, stopout, and transfer rates. The series draws on data collected for the 2012/17 Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal…

This thesis examines two uncommon topics in the economic literature regarding college access and completion: the role of college proximity in recent high school graduates' enrollment decisions, and how structural changes to the student experience at a postsecondary institution can affect college completion. The first chapter is a review of the…

In today's educational climate, liberal arts institutions must demonstrate that their educational goals are being met. This paper presents reliability and stability testing of a concise, research-based survey instrument designed to examine student perceptions of academic experiences that is particularly suited to institutions rooted in the liberal…

Students with health impairments represent a growing sector of the college population, but health-based disparities in bachelor's degree completion persist. The classes students pass and the grades they receive during the first year of college provides signals of degree progress and academic fit that shape educational expectations, potentially…

This First Look report presents selected findings from the 2012/17 Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study (BPS:12/17), a nationally representative survey of undergraduates who entered postsecondary education for the first time in the 2011-12 academic year. BPS:12/17 covers the experiences of these first-time beginning postsecondary…