Promoting staff well-being has been a challenge for many residence life departments long before the COVID-19 pandemic led to a decrease in the mental well-being of the general population as well as in residence life staff. The stressful work environment and demanding work hours in residence life have been linked to burnout and intentions to leave…

A descriptive survey design was adopted to investigate the relationship that exists amongst locus of control, work engagement, organisational reward system, job satisfaction and social loafing among the staff of distance learning programme in South-western Nigeria. Four hundred and forty-seven (males = 184; females = 263) learners support staff…

While many studies have examined work-life satisfaction within the field of student affairs, few have examined the dissonance between new professionals' expectations for professional practice and their experience in the first few years. Using a narrative inquiry method, this qualitative study investigated how professionalism is both practiced and…

The authors, coming from different generations, know that their colleagues have differing perspectives on how one responds to the demanding work in student affairs. Generational differences, however, create a diverse work environment that benefits students. Currently there are four generations gainfully employed in the US workforce. This includes…

This study utilized a phenomenological qualitative research design to assess job satisfaction of women student affairs professionals in Louisiana at entry, mid, and senior levels positions. The purpose of this research was to examine perceptions of women student affairs professionals in Louisiana higher education institutions regarding: (1) job…

Decades of established research have focused on the attrition, workplace trauma, and career burnout of student affairs (SA) professionals working at colleges and universities (see N. J. Evans, 1988; Herr & Strange, 1985; Perez & Bettencourt, 2024; Walterbusch, 2019). The purpose of this generic qualitative research study (Khalke, 2016) was…

This chapter explores the transition from the master's-level graduate school experience to life as an early career professional in higher education and student affairs.

This critical phenomenological study aims to analyze the lived experiences of Latino male student affairs (SA) professionals considered early to mid-career at predominantly White institutions (PWIs). Three research questions guide the study: 1) How do Latino male SA professionals in higher education describe their leadership experiences at PWIs?…

This research utilizes an Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis design to investigate female senior student affairs officers (SSAOs) as they experience and implement gendered communication practices in the higher education workplace. Research regarding female SSAO interactions are absent from discourse on gendered communication and no…

Campus crisis responders are critical to ensuring the safety of students on a college campus. However, attrition in student affairs and specifically in the field of residence life (the department that most professionals that serve in an on-call rotation would fall under), continues to be a concern (Marshall et al., 2016). I assert that burnout of…

Following the format of autoethnographic vignettes, this study describes the experience of a student affairs educator as they navigate their trans* becoming while working on a university campus. While many higher education institutions include gender identity and gender in their nondiscrimination policy, and offer trans* affirming healthcare,…

Henryism as a construct draws comparisons to what is commonly referred to as respectability politics, or the active adoption of standards rooted in whiteness as a regulatory instrument of one's behavior and emotions. This manuscript will bring Henryism and respectability politics into conversation in an effort to illuminate the paradox of…

The purpose of this research was to develop an understanding of student affairs staff experiences with the departure of a chief student affairs officer (CSAO) at a 4-year college or university. The topic was investigated through the perspective of staff who reported to a CSAO at the time the CSAO departed the organization. The study's primary…

In this instrumental case study, we explored the experiences of working mothers in student affairs and how their situated realities are shaped by institutional and professional norms, including commonly understood written and unwritten practices. We conducted interviews and focus groups with 21 mothers working full-time at a research-intensive…

Early career attrition in student affairs is a topic of interest for hiring and supervising managers, graduate preparation programs, as well as new professionals. Contributions to the growing body of research on the topic potentially informs best practices in curriculum development, hiring, onboarding, and professional development for new student…