The psychodynamics of learning and teaching at a time of changing funding arrangements and priorities are explored and discussed through students' accounts of their experience of university. The contextual, organizational and socio-political characteristics implicated in these psychodynamic processes are considered. Among the psychodynamic issues…

A collection of essays by students at the University of Michigan's Pilot Program, an innovative, 600-student, academic/residential undergraduate unit, written specifically for other college students, is presented. The essays give personal glimpses of college life to college students to help them learn from each other what discoveries and…

Undergraduates (N=204) completed three scales of the student adaptation to college questionnaire. Measures of coping and emotional adjustment revealed differences among the three groups of students labeled adaptive, maladaptive, and non-perfectionists. Perfectionism and coping predicted emotional adjustment but coping as a moderator or mediator in…

The purpose of this study was to examine scary stories that young American adults recalled being told about physical education as they transferred from elementary school to secondary school. Participants were 70 undergraduate students. They were required to write about any scary stories concerning (a) secondary schooling in general, and (b)…

This paper explores how students adjust to life at universities outside their home countries. Much of the current body of research was conducted prior to the 9/11 tragedy and focuses primarily on studies within a single U.S. institution. This project expands the boundaries by including multiple institutions from around the globe post-9/11. The…

Foreign students frequently encounter problems adjusting to new social environments while attending institutions of higher education. The purpose of this study was to describe the level of social difficulty experienced by foreign students from different regions of the world while studying in the United States. The target population for this study…

New undergraduates (n=198) completed surveys on expectations about college adjustment; later completed survey of actual adjustment. Six years later, results indicated that two different sets of items best discriminated among good-standing persisters and leavers, and among poor-standing persisters and leavers. Emotional and social adjustment items…

Describes a one-day workshop developed at the University of Sydney (Australia) to facilitate social and study-related peer networks. Qualitative and quantitative analyses found that the workshops enhanced study, self-motivation, and general enjoyment of university life and were helpful in easing the transition of undergraduate students.…

The present study aimed to evaluate the role of social support and self-efficacy on the level of stress associated with the transition from high school to university. One hundred and eight-five university students who had completed high school in the previous year completed a three-part questionnaire designed to gather information on their levels…

Compared self-efficacy, interest congruence, and student commitment across indices of academic adjustment and career indecision for 98 undergraduates. Both commitment and self-efficacy were salient predictors of academic adjustment. Commitment also contributed the most variance in the explanation of one's major. Found different pattern in…

Examined importance of current student-parent attachment relationships among upperclassmen (n=131). Assessed attachment and multiple aspects of student adjustment at three points within same semester. Attachment to both mother and father consistently was important for daughters' academic, interpersonal, and emotional well-being. For sons,…

Eight full-time international undergraduate students enrolled in a Southeast university completed a survey of open-ended questions and participated in a focus group interview. Purpose was to gain understanding of needs and concerns of international students so that student affairs professionals might better meet these needs. Findings suggest most…

Assesses relationships among college drinking, adjustment, recent life changing events, interpersonal factors, self control, and perceived risk. Significant correlations were found between alcohol use and life change, but not between alcohol use and college adjustment. In addition, several significant findings linked alcohol to social factors.…

This study addressed the quality of the racial environment, the "racial climate," that students of color face on predominantly white campuses and the impact this has on student satisfaction and successful academic performance. The second question is that of the role of ethnic or racial identification in students' adjustment to the campus…

Describes psychosocial factors that predicted college adjustment of first-year undergraduate students on the basis of studies conducted in two universities of differing size, focus, and geographic location. Academic self-confidence, positive attitudes toward the university, and faculty and peer support significantly predicted more successful…