Intrusive advising has been frequently used to encourage or require at-risk or probationary students to attend advising sessions. The efficacy of intrusive advising targeted to all students has received little attention. We implemented a case-control experiment with 501 first-year students at a large, urban, state university to test the efficacy…

This paper presents a model for assessing the impact of interaction with faculty on student outcomes. Based on analyses of 1,500 freshman responses to Your First College Year survey, the study identified significant relationships between interaction with faculty and perceived growth in knowledge (r = 0.29, p less than or equal to 0.001); academic…

In a study of new friendships and adjustment among 1st-year university students, students at six Canadian universities completed questionnaires that assessed the quality of new friendships and adjustment during their first academic year. In-depth, face-to-face interviews about students' new friendships were conducted with a subsample of these…

The preceptor program at the University of Hartford was designed to increase engagement among first-year students and to provide role-modeling opportunities for upper-class students. Data from the first two years of the program were examined. In the first year, 611 undergraduate students in 40 introductory-level courses (26 with preceptors, 14…

Transition from school or college to university is a time of great anxiety for many first-year undergraduates: some studies illustrate the emphasis which students place on finding new friends and securing a consistent social life; the importance of which resonates more with peers than with parents or lecturers. This has to be accomplished…

This study explores the deployment of electronic portfolios to a university-wide cohort of freshman undergraduates that included a subgroup of at-risk and lower academically prepared learners. Five evaluative dimensions based on persistence and engagement theory were included in the development of four assessment rubrics exploring goal clarity,…

First-year seminars have become common at liberal arts and other colleges across the United States. An accumulating body of research appears to demonstrate that this curricular element is associated with increased retention of students and is positively correlated with graduation rates, student adjustment and involvement, student satisfaction,…

The present study examined undergraduate students' physical activity during transition from high school to first-year university. Students' (N = 127) self-efficacy for coping with barriers to physical activity was investigated both as a predictor of physical activity and mediator of the relationship between pretransition and first-year physical…

This article draws on research grounded in a theoretical framework informed by the work of Alfred Schutz and of Berger and Luckmann and explores transition to university as a loss experience. The specific loss examined here is that which results from student identity discontinuity as they undertake the initial transition to university--a…

First Year Experience (FYE) programs have been implemented in universities and colleges to address the emergent needs of matriculating students. It is well documented that many students are not prepared for the rigors of postsecondary education and FYE programs are designed to supplement the necessary academic and life skills. These academic and…

This study examined whether six academic orientations as assessed by the Survey of Academic Orientations played a role in the attrition of college freshmen. Using logistic regression, the dichotomous variable of reenrolling or not was regressed on 522 students' scores measuring structure dependence, creative expression, reading for pleasure,…

This study examined transitional experiences of first-year college students who were homeschooled in high school. It sought to determine if experiences of such students corresponded with Tinto's (1988, 1993) theory of student departure. The qualitative study found that there was little distinction between the transitional experiences of…

The primary purpose of this article is to elaborate on a psychological concept related to Tinto's construct of social integration. The concept introduced in this article is worldview fit, defined as the perceived ideological compatibility between the student and the institution (e.g., faculty, peers). This purpose was accomplished through three…

This prospective study examined the relations between organized activity involvement, loneliness, and friendship quality across the transition to college. In all, 85 adolescents (54 females and 31 males) completed measures during the summer before their first year of college (Time 1) and 10 months later (Time 2). More intense involvement in…

For most students assessment guides their study and learning practice. Yet in the literature associated with the first year of study at university, few have mobilised the power of assessment to develop and engage first year undergraduate students. This paper presents a model of assessment for first year students which separates the semester into…