Many at-risk college students fail to avail themselves of the resources provided for them by their universities. In the interest of academic retention, colleges and universities are taking an increasingly proactive stance and contacting at-risk students to offer them specific services. This study compared retention rates for at-risk freshman…

This study examined the critical thinking skills of resident and commuter students during the freshmen year, controlled for precollege background and ability. Differences in commuter and resident students' experience, particularly aspects of academic and social integration were also considered. The study sample was a subset taken from a national…

Argues that freshman seminar class reunions increase the benefits of freshman seminars for urban commuter college students, and reports results of a study testing effectiveness of class reunions in reducing attrition for high-risk students (n=40). Findings support hypothesis that freshmen seminar groups with class reunions show greater student…

At Fordham University's Lincoln Center campus in New York City, the large population of nontraditional students, primarily adults, is being encouraged to participate in the career planning process through existing programs, new scheduling, and new programing in four areas: freshman orientation; student activities; the career center; and academic…

This report sought to test the hypothesis that living on campus fosters cognitive growth by estimating the relative freshman-year gains in reading comprehension, mathematical reasoning, and critical thinking of resident and commuter students at an urban university. Data were collected from 210 college freshmen students at a large research…

This booklet provides advice, collected from the experiences of students who have completed their freshman year, on how to prepare for and complete the first year of college. The booklet begins with suggestions on the types of things that the new student should consider packing, such as items for the dorm room, various school supplies,…

The following questions are investigated: Are there identifiable dimensions along which resident and commuter students systematically differ? If there are differences, will the commuting student appear to be educationally, socially, and attitudinally disadvantaged as suggested by several studies? Can subgroups of commuters be defined with…

Examined effects of an individualized faculty advising program, study-skills training, and a tutorial center on the academic performance and retention of Black freshmen enrolled at a predominantly White university. Data suggest that nonresidency, off-campus employment, and organizational involvement adversely affect academic performance and…

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of various types of living accommodations on the academic performance of college freshmen at West Chester State College (Pennsylvania). Three types of housing were defined: single-sex dormitories, coeducational dormitories, and commuter living accommodations. The association of housing…

A survey of 1,200 students at York University (Ontario) found students' place of residence affected student involvement and first-year grades. After controlling for standardized test scores and department, freshman grades of off-campus students were higher than those of on-campus students. Despite off-campus residence and low involvement in some…

Reasons for the withdrawal of 159 first-semester freshmen from Salem State College, Massachusetts, during the fall 1981 or 1982 semesters were studied. Questionnaire results supported the following assumptions: community problems contribute to student withdrawal, not getting into the dorm contributes to attrition for some students, financial…

In addition to providing demographic information and data on sex, age and college majors, 500 freshmen who attended DeKalb Community College orientation classes during fall 1977 were asked to rank various student subcultures according to preference. The subculture list followed the Clark-Trow model that defines four subgroups among college…

This report is one of a series reporting data from an 11-year longitudinal study of two random samples of 100 students each, selected from the 1966 and 1967 entering freshman classes at the State University of New York at Buffalo. The study spans 10 years for each group. Responses from 60 of the 100 students in the 1966 sample and 54 of the 1967…

This paper presents data showing how change of major, course load patterns, housing location, and first semester grade point average relate to the percentage of students in the following four outcomes: voluntarily not returning to college, being academically suspended, continuing enrollment, or graduating. (Author/MLW)

The purpose of this report is to compare the freshman experience of commuter and residents students at the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP) who were studied as part of the Maryland Longitudinal Study. Residents, dependent commuters, and independent commuters in the Representative Sample (434 students representing all ethnic groups at…