This article intends to debate the institutional modes of first-year adjustment to higher education. Specifically, the aim is to analyze and consider the need to include social and academic integration activities in the curricular programs. The presented contributions are based on the investigations over the case study course that was studied…

While great attention has been given to the growth of international students at U.S. institutions, there is a gap in the literature examining support for this student population within residence halls. To address the gap, this quantitative study evaluated an international roommate-pairing program (IRP) by comparing the residential experience of…

The University of Macau located in Macau Special Administration Region recently relocated its campus from Macau to the neighbouring island of Hengqin and requires all first year students to live on campus in the newly established residential college system. This paper examines the effect of being homesick on perceived university support of first…

At many higher education institutions, admissions decisions often rely on standardized test scores and high school grades; yet, they are less reliable predictors for applicants falling slightly below cutoff points, what we call borderline applicants. Since borderline applicants are often from underrepresented backgrounds and diverted to 2-year…

Background: Existing literature has documented relationships between personality traits and academic achievement as well as some of the mechanisms underlying these links. However, the pathways by which personality traits are associated with achievement during stressful educational circumstances require further investigation. Aims: This study…

This ethnographic case study examined first-year, first-generation, low-income Latino/a college students' social experiences and familial support during their transition from a charter high school to four-year universities. Through interviews and observations, we found that maintaining communication and building relationships among high school and…

Decades of student persistence and retention literature has brought to light factors of social, academic, and religious fit that influence a student's decision to remain at or depart from an institution. At Christian institutions, increasing student pluralism raises the likelihood that students will not fit religiously. This qualitative study of…

Undergraduate peer mentoring programs strive to retain students who solve their own problems, develop options, unravel obstacles, and establish a process of figuring out solutions. A crucial component of obtaining that goal is to effectively train peer mentors to serve as advocates to freshman undergraduate students. Terrion and Philion (2008)…

Community college transfer students often experience "transfer shock" at receiving four-year institutions, which includes a variety of academic, social, and institutional challenges associated with the first-year transfer experience. Research has demonstrated that first-year program interventions can facilitate the transition of…

Transitioning from school to university is a major development for learners, often accompanied by difficulties. When overseas students arrive at university for the first time these challenges are multiplied. It is suggested, however, that these difficulties can be mitigated to a certain extent via the use of online social networks. The present…

Would you like to help your students adjust to university life? Perhaps you are simply interested in allowing them to feel more integrated into a department right from the start of their first year? These were the types of issues that we were hoping to address when we founded the MySci Advisors Program, a peer-mentoring group for first year…

Students making the transition from high school to university often encounter many stressors and new experiences. Many students adjust successfully to university; however, some students do not, often resulting in attrition from the university and mental health issues. The primary aim of the current study was to examine the effects that optimism,…

Culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) is used broadly and inclusively to describe communities with diverse language, ethnic background, nationality, dress, traditions, food, societal structures, art and religion characteristics. Domestic CALD people are either refugees or voluntary migrants and have obtained permanent residency or…

This qualitative study identified the factors that contributed to the success experienced by students with learning disabilities in their first year of college. The primary factors that emerged from student interviews were their attitudes about higher education, and their personal attributes including motivation, maturity, and persistence.…

Facebook status updates provided the data for a study about the transition learning experiences of 1st-year university students. Strict ethical guidelines were proposed by the PhD researcher from the outset of the study. Anonymity was considered important for the approved ethical clearance for both the university and the participants.…