This paper describes a 2-week global study course to Doha, Qatar for graduate students in the higher education leadership and student affairs program at the University of San Diego. The course sought to develop intercultural competence with a specific focus on understanding Qatari and Middle Eastern perspectives and culture, understanding the…

This paper aims to examine the experiences of pupils and professionals who are affected by actual or threatened permanent exclusion (what used to be called "being expelled") from school. An ethnographic study based on the writer's employment within secondary schools and the Children's Services department of an urban local authority in…

Despite the significant attention that drugs and alcohol receive on college campuses, few resources and supports are available to students who are recovering from an addiction. Student affairs professionals are uniquely positioned to support these students with a variety of strategies. This article summarizes what is currently known about college…

This study explored the relationship between the degree to which top administrators of four-year colleges and universities that have been effective in implementing and sustaining assessment view the use of assessment and seven components of institutional sensemaking at their institutions. The underlying premise is that outcomes assessment…

Collegiate athletics has exploded into a multimillion-dollar enterprise that has brought with it a host of issues, including the exploitation of student athletes, concerns about student athletes' academic success and low graduation rates, cheating by student athletes and staff, and misbehavior and crimes committed by student athletes, coaches, and…

Although fundraising is not necessarily a natural activity for those trained and serving in student affairs functions, it is activity to which those in the field may have to grow accustomed. Fundraising on behalf of student affairs needs to be undertaken with a widely understood process and clearly articulated goals. When student affairs staff…

The development of, and adherence to, performance standards is imperative for success in today's competitive global market. This is as true for academic programmes in higher education as it is for the manufacturing and service sectors. Just like their counterparts in business and industry, it is important that graduate career preparation…

Since the 1960s, American Catholic social institutions have struggled with issues related to their organizational and religious identities (Dosen, 2009; Gallin, 2000; Weakland, 1994). For Catholic colleges and universities, these issues are evidenced by the difficulty some institutions have with being readily able to recognize their distinctive…

This qualitative, multiple case study explored what women working in student affairs reported as influences on their career choices and the impact that the type and level of student interaction has on their careers. Data from semi-structured interviews and journal entries were obtained from ten women working in student affairs at private,…

The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of new professionals in college student affairs as proteges in mentoring relationships. This study was designed as an exploratory study into the types of mentoring relationships that exist among college student affairs professionals, using Q methodology. The profession of college student…

Prior research on student affairs professionals has focused largely on the nature of student affairs work with most attention given to mid- and senior-level administrators. Thus, relatively little is known about new professionals and their socialization to the student affairs profession. Based on a multivariate analysis of survey data from a…

This study assessed the level of crisis preparedness in higher education from the perspective of chief student affairs administrators at residential universities post-September 11, 2001 to pre-Virginia Tech shootings in April 2007. Crisis preparedness was determined by compiling and comparing data results derived from an instrument implemented in…

Many students spend a significant portion of their college life outside of the classroom, yet very little is known about the learning they experience as a result of their interactions outside of the classroom. Intentional out-of-class educational experiences offer educators a powerful window into not only understanding the college student…

It has been estimated that, due to increased turnover, an aging population, growing complexities and sizes of institutions, as well as the bureaucratization of searches, college and universities will see a continued increase in the utilization of interim leadership (Padilla, 2004). Student affairs divisions are not immune to this phenomenon and…

Self-authorship, as described by Baxter Magolda (2008), is about trusting ourselves (our internal voice), rather than relying on external voices to guide our lives. Young professionals attempt to navigate new experiences based on prior knowledge and begin to distinguish what others tell them from what they believe and value on their own. The path…