Community College Adjustment and Learning: Reaching Successful Student Outcomes

2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (5) ◽  
pp. 5-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alan M. “Woody” Schwitzer ◽  
Pat Huber
2021 ◽  
pp. 026540752110345
Author(s):  
Jordan A. Booker ◽  
Erika Hernandez ◽  
Karen E. Talley ◽  
Julie C. Dunsmore

The college transition involves social challenges for students, including concerns about distance from family and hometown friends, and pressure to build a new social network on campus. Students who are successfully navigating these social challenges should be better adjusted on campus and feel more satisfied with the direction of their lives. We measured two expressions of relatedness in incoming, central US students’ ( N = 244; M age = 18.1 years; 78.6% women) autobiographical recollections of the college transition: (a) dispositional relatedness (DR) and tendencies to emphasize motivations for connecting with others; and (b) situational relatedness (SR) and reflections on successes and challenges within specific relationship domains. We hypothesized that both expressions of relatedness would be positively and distinctly associated with longitudinal reports of college adjustment (i.e., belonging) and subjective well-being (i.e., life satisfaction). We also hypothesized that changes in college adjustment would mediate associations between expressions of relatedness and well-being. Findings broadly supported expectations. Each expression of relatedness robustly predicted better student outcomes longitudinally. Further, improvements in college belonging and decreases in homesickness mediated the ties between situational relatedness and subjective well-being. We discuss the implications of these findings for the college transition and student support services.


2019 ◽  
Vol 46 (5) ◽  
pp. 590-598
Author(s):  
Matteo Arena ◽  
David K. Krause

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to suggest best practices for managing a successful student-managed investment program (SMIP) based on the experience of the Marquette University’s Applied Investment Management (AIM) program. Design/methodology/approach The authors provide a detailed description of the program curriculum, instructional design, fund structure, program history, fund performance and student outcomes. Findings Through its experiential learning innovations, focus on ethics and close relationships with a dedicated alumni group, the AIM program prepares students for a successful career in investment analysis. Students who graduate from the AIM program experience a significantly higher successful placement rate and higher compensation at their first post-graduation job than finance major students who graduate outside the program. Originality/value This paper provides a detailed description of the distinguishing characteristics of the AIM program and, in doing so, it offers ideas that could be implemented by other SMIPs to improve student satisfaction, proficiency in investment analysis and employment prospects.


2012 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Vernon C. Smith ◽  
Adam Lange ◽  
Daniel R. Huston

Community colleges continue to experience tremendous growth in online courses. This growth reflects the need to increase the numbers of students who complete certificates or degrees. Retaining online students, not to mention assuring their success, is a challenge that must be addressed through practical institutional responses. By leveraging the huge volumes of existing student information, higher education institutions can build statistical models, or learning analytics, to forecast student outcomes. This is a case study from a community college utilizing learning analytics and the development of predictive models to identify at-risk students based on dozens of key variables.


2021 ◽  
pp. 016237372199314
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Bell

In this article, I utilize a regression discontinuity design to estimate the effects of Tulsa Achieves—a prevalent and understudied type of tuition-free college program. In contrast to concerns regarding tuition-free community college suppressing bachelor’s degree attainment, I find that Tulsa Achieves increased the likelihood of transferring to 4-year colleges by 13 to 14 percentage points and increased bachelor’s degree attainment by approximately 2 percentage points. The estimates for shorter outcomes are underpowered to detect policy relevant effects, but suggest Tulsa Achieves increased college GPA and had a null impact on credit accumulation, retention, and graduation from Tulsa Community College.


AERA Open ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 233285841985203
Author(s):  
Huriya Jabbar ◽  
Saralyn McKinnon-Crowley ◽  
Carmen Serrata

Many community college students express a desire to transfer to a 4-year institution, but few achieve that goal. In this article, we examine what conditions lead to successful student transfer and which serve as barriers. Drawing on data from a longitudinal qualitative study of 61 transfer-intending students in Texas and using qualitative comparative analysis, we investigate the student-level conditions and experiences that contribute to successful or unsuccessful transfer to a 4-year institution. We find that there is no single condition that can predict success. Instead, we describe how factors such as social capital, students’ family background, and advising supports interact with one another to determine student success or failure in the transfer process. We identify specific pathways to transfer, with implications for policies and programs that can help bolster students in the face of potential barriers. We provide suggestions for policy, practice, and future research.


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