Research in both education and in entrepreneurship has shown that certain attitudes, skills, and behaviors are helpful in working through problems to achieve success (Brown & Ryan, 2003; Dino, 2015; Duckworth et al, 2007; Dweck, 2009; MacCann et al., 2012; Metcalfe & Shumamura,1994; West et al., 2016). Fortunately, many of these attitudes,…

Higher education institutions continue to place a strong emphasis on helping students successfully complete college. Currently, a limited amount of research supports teaching academic resilience as a skill in the higher education setting. In addition, little is known about using first-year experience (FYE) courses as a platform for teaching…

In this study, I examined ways in which Black undergraduate students perceive student success and how those perceptions are influenced by institutional power structures. In historically and predominantly white institutions, the structural conditions of anti-Blackness are endemic to the college experience and can influence how students perceive…

Attrition rates for first year students enrolled in community colleges remains high and results in poor first to second year retention and overall poor retention. The average national attrition rate remains averages 38% resulting in poor retention and completion rates for students enrolling in community colleges (NCES, 2019). To address the issue…

Although higher education leaders have established goals to increase the number of women in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields, first-generation female college students remain underrepresented in STEM majors. Astin's (1970) inputs-environment-outputs (I-E-O) theory of student development provided a framework to examine how…

This study evaluated the impact of a First-Year Experience (FYE) program on student success at a small, private, faith-based distance learning university serving a predominantly nontraditional student population. Student data (N = 399) from two groups were compared to determine if the FYE made a difference in student success as measured by…

Attention to the origins, history, and evolution of the First-Year Experience (FYE) movement in American higher education can inform institutional practices aimed at enhancing transition experiences of students.