This study contributes to the body of research that is attempting to uncover what student characteristics and university programs and policies are predictive of student persistence and graduation. Loss of student enrollments through attrition prior to graduation and low graduation rates have significant negative consequences for universities and the attempt to better understand how to mitigate this attrition is an important priority for both researchers and university administrators and policymakers. This study differs from previous research in that it both provides a new theoretical framework for understanding possible causes of student attrition and by advancing methods and quality of the data used in the study of predictors of attrition. A theoretical framework informed by radical alterity (Keesing, 1974), Turner's liminal theory (1967, 1969, 1974), Keefer's domain theory (2006) and assimilation contrast theory (Meyers-Levy & Sternthal, 1993; Warner 2007) are used to test the hypothesis that the likelihood of persisting and attaining a baccalaureate degree are related to, in part, freshman seminar participation and high core curriculum completion rates. Specifically, this study examines the effects that freshman seminar and core completion ratios have on both freshman to sophomore persistence and degree completion at a US, Master's Large, Western, public university. Multi-level logistic regression is used to provide a measure of the likelihood of persisting when controlling for the clustering effects of major choice and year of initial enrollment. Survival analysis will allow for the examination of the probable hazard of dropout over time based on first-term academic events. Results indicate that core curriculum completion ratios in the areas of English, mathematics, and science play key roles in both freshmen to sophomore persistence. Furthermore, socially oriented freshmen seminar programming is central to increased retention rates for specific student populations. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]