ERIC Number: ED641565
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2021
Pages: 156
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: 979-8-7806-1598-9
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Exploring the Lived Experiences of First-Time Freshmen during a Pre-Enrollment Visit to Campus: An Exploratory Study
Scott Robert Argo
ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, University of Georgia
As the world changes, institutions of higher education are constantly adopting new business practices in order to ensure future success of their institutions. While enrollment managers are focused on their marketing and recruitment tactics, high school students are being inundated with recruitment materials including invitations to visit campus, a traditional method of promoting a college experience. Although students who visit a college campus are twice as likely to matriculate as students who do not visit prior to the application process, there is a lack of knowledge on what specific factors of the visit influence that process. This generic qualitative study used Strange and Banning's 2015 campus ecology framework as a model to examine the experiences of seven first-time freshmen and understand which aspects of a campus visit at a small, four-year institution in the Southeast were most meaningful as they moved through their individual college search process. This study concluded that the campus visit experience of prospective college students was influential in their college search process, and although students often visited campus with a specific set of priorities, other factors emerged as a result of the visit and become important priorities. Ultimately, multiple visits to campus impacted students' college choice process as they were able to begin to understand the campus culture and better envision themselves attending the institution. The results of the study include suggestions for institutions of higher education as they continue to invest in campus visits and shape the institution to meet students' expectations. [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.]
Descriptors: College Freshmen, College Bound Students, Transitional Programs, School Orientation, Student Experience, Small Schools, College Choice, High School Graduates, Decision Making, School Culture
ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway, P.O. Box 1346, Ann Arbor, MI 48106. Tel: 800-521-0600; Web site: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml
Publication Type: Dissertations/Theses - Doctoral Dissertations
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education; High Schools; Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A