In recent years, advocates for research-based education have publicized many examples of passive research involvement, defined as undergraduates learning about the content and lived experience of research at their institution. But the qualitative dimensions of passive research involvement remain unknown. The authors' study uses Diana Laurillard's…

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) are reportedly experienced by 61% of the population (Center for Disease Control research, 2019). With high rates of students experiencing trauma, the need for teacher support is evident. This study examined the experiences and perspectives of students regarding the support they received from their teachers.…

Purpose: Research shows that family is influential to African Americans in college choice (Chapman "et al.," 2018; Chapman "et al.," 2020; Freeman, 2005; Hines "et al.," 2019; Lowry, 2017; Williams, 2018). However, it often overlooks unique, African-rooted characteristics of African American families and culture. This…

Latina students have been enrolling in colleges at increasing rates but experience disproportionate levels of STEM major declaration and persistence, even at Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs). This qualitative study explored the first-year experiences of Latina students at a newly designated HSI to gain insights into how to serve them better as…

The transition from high school to university is often a challenge for many students, as they face numerous academic and social adjustments during this time. For the 2020 cohort, these challenges were compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic which further exacerbated the existing concerns and uncertainties. This study reports on the perceptions of a…

This study is about the experiences for first-year women who take part in the Formal Panhellenic Recruitment process but are not accepted for membership. The participants narrate their experiences with Formal Panhellenic Recruitment as well as how the process affected their transition to their institution and how the process changed their path to…

Universities today are facing challenges regarding students' persistence and success especially among first year students who converge from diverse socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds and anticipate a smooth academic and social adjustment to the university setting. However, contextual and individual factors play important role in the academic…

In this critical qualitative study, we examined how mentoring in a college bridge program for first-year students from historically marginalized backgrounds contributed to the development of a culture of mentoring. Participants included 24 students who participated in Project Scholar, and four staff members who worked for the program. We utilized…

This research investigated the pivotal role of Living Learning Communities (LLCs) within a public Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) institution in the southeast region within the United States in fostering a sense of belonging among students and its subsequent influence on the university retention rate for freshman students. A…

Generation Z will be the traditional-aged college student for the next 12 years (Chatzoglou et al., 2020). It is imperative that colleges and universities understand who these students are, what they are expecting from college, and what influences their expectations of the collegiate experience. Understanding Generation Z and their wants and needs…

Many studies have highlighted the limited 'opportunity structures' of working-class undergraduates. However, there have been few studies exploring how students' agentic internal conversations mediate societal structures. Internal conversation is a reflexive process in which thoughts and decisions are considered in relation to social circumstances.…

This qualitative study investigates the financial stress and financial well-being of 10 diverse at-promise students attending three university campuses in the midwestern United States. The study's data included 29 individual participant interviews conducted during the fall, spring, and summer semesters of the 1st-year of their college careers.…

Research on student transition into Higher Education (HE) has taken different theoretical perspectives. First, studies investigated personal variables such as students' self-efficacy, emotions and motivation regarding the transition from school to HE. A second strand of research focused on contextual variables, for instance college effectiveness…

In this work, we explore first-year students' experiences of belonging through the theoretical and methodological lens of nomadism. Specifically, we problematize conceptions of belonging subjects and spaces as bounded and static, instead taking up belongingness as a dynamic process that enfolds complex experiences and spaces. Using feminist…

This article explores arguments for adopting appreciative inquiry (AI) as an action research approach that generates pedagogic development in UK and international higher education. An overview of AI considering the methodological dilemma of focusing only on positive experiences is discussed. Findings from focus group discussions in a post-1992 UK…