The Experience and Persistence of College Students in STEM Majors

2016 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 413-432 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yonghong Jade Xu
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
Degree Completion ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
College Experience ◽  
College Education ◽  
Academic Program ◽  
Academic Major ◽  
Stem Majors ◽  
Student College ◽  
Stem Students

In this study, an online survey was constructed based on the extant literature on college student success. The survey was used to collect data from a sample of college students in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) majors in order to examine their learning experiences and to identify the factors that may influence their persistence to degree completion. The findings support the theoretical modeling of the academic and social aspects of student college experience. Nonetheless, it is the institutional conditions, particularly the quality of academic program and faculty teaching and accessibility, which dominate the STEM students’ college experience and their persistence in academic major and to graduation. Therefore, it is critical for academic institutions to invest in a supportive learning environment by emphasizing quality teaching, accessible academic advising, and related functions in order to successfully engage STEM students in college education and increase their likelihood of degree completion.

scholarly journals The Relationships of Family, Perceived Digital Competence and Attitude, and Learning Agility in Sustainable Student Engagement in Higher Education

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 4635 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hye Kim ◽  
Ah Hong ◽  
Hae-Deok Song
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
Student Engagement ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
College Education ◽  
Digital Technologies ◽  
Digital Natives ◽  
Study Data ◽  
Digital Competence ◽  
Learning Agility ◽  
The Impact

College students are often assumed to be digitally fluent as they are “digital natives”, owing to their exposure to digital technologies from an early age. Furthermore, it is assumed that this digital competence is likely to prepare them for learning in college. However, it has been observed that current college students who are “digital natives” may or may not effectively apply digital technologies during their college education. The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of college students’ prior digital experiences, particularly their families’ influence, on their in-college digital competence and attitude, and by extension, on student engagement. A total of 381 university students were surveyed in this study. Data was obtained from a self-administered, online survey and analyzed using partial least squares, which also evaluated the research model. According to the findings of this study, students’ positive prior digital experience significantly influences their perceived digital competence and their attitude toward digital technologies. In addition, our research also indicates that college students’ perceived digital competence and attitudes are mediated by their learning agility, which is the ability to continuously learn and the willingness to apply acquired knowledge. This article may thus act as a springboard for further empirical research, as well as for examining the nature of students’ prior and positive experiences and learning agility in digital competencies.

DACA-Mexico Origin Students in the United States-Mexican Borderlands

2020 ◽  
pp. 20-45
Author(s):  
Maggie Dominguez ◽  
Miriam L. Frolow
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
College Students ◽  
New Mexico ◽  
Degree Completion ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
The United States ◽  
Mexican Origin ◽  
Undocumented Youth ◽  
Deferred Action ◽  
Youth And Young Adults

The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) Program enabled more than 700,000 undocumented youth and young adults since 2012 the chance to have a lawful presence in the United States for a 2-year renewable period. With DACA status, college students could have access to financial aid and possibly in-state tuition, as well as opportunities to work legally. A correlational study was conducted in 2016-2017 with 30 DACA college students of Mexican Origin who were residing in California, Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico. They completed an anonymous online survey about their intent to persist to degree completion, their views on the college climate for diversity, and their sense of belonging on campus. The results of the study confirm the need for higher education faculty and staff to provide services and resources and to build trust with this vulnerable student population.

scholarly journals Understanding the Effect of Information Sources on College Students’ Recycling/Reuse Behavior towards Clothing and Textile Products

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (11) ◽  
pp. 6298
Author(s):  
Mijeong Noh
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
Interpersonal Communication ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Information Sources ◽  
Reasoned Action ◽  
College Education ◽  
Subjective Norms ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
And Behavior

This study investigated how college students’ exposure to recycling/reuse information through various sources, such as education, media, and interpersonal communication sources, affects their subjective norms, recycling/reuse attitude, intention and behavior. A self-administered online survey was conducted to ask questions about exposure frequency to recycling/reuse information sources, subjective norms, attitude, intention, and behavior based on the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA). The final sample consisted of 725 participants from MTurk. Structural equation modeling was used to test six hypotheses. The results showed that obtaining recycling/reuse information through media sources led college students to have a positive attitude, positively affecting their recycling/reuse intention and behavior, whereas the information obtained from college education sources positively influenced their intention and behavior via inducing either positive subjective norms or positive subjective norms and subsequently attitude. Interpersonal communication sources were neither effective in developing positive subjective norms nor recycling/reuse attitude. Significant findings may provide important insights into how educators, environmental agencies, and brand managers can more effectively manage information sources to promote college students’ recycling and reuse attitude, intention, and behavior.

Does academic major matter in mobile assisted language learning? A quasi-experimental study

2019 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nattaporn Thongsri ◽  
Liang Shen ◽  
Bao Yukun
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Academic Major ◽  
Learning Performance ◽  
Stem Majors ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Foreign Language Learners ◽  
Mobile Assisted Language Learning ◽  
Quasi Experimental ◽  
Stem Students ◽  
Statistical Analysis Technique

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the use of mobile assisted language learning (MALL) in vocabulary learning among English foreign language learners in China with a lens on academic major difference. This study hypothesizes that academic majors including Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) and non-STEM differentiate the learners’ perception of computer self-efficacy (CSE) and MALL learning performance as well as moderate the effect of CSE on language learning performance. Design/methodology/approach Sample data for this study were collected from 200 university students enrolled in both STEM and non-STEM majors. Under the quasi-experiment, this study had been conducted vocabulary training, pre-test, post-test and a questionnaire. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences, a statistical analysis technique based on ANOVA and regression were used to analyze the data. Findings The results support hypotheses that CSE, learning score and satisfaction are rated higher for STEM students than non-STEM ones and indicate the effect of CSE on language learning performance is stronger for STEM students than non-STEM ones in using MALL. Originality/value This paper addressed important issues in language learning on the academic major difference. The findings would be the guidelines for educational organizations to motivate and stimulate students with sustainable self-confidence important not only for improvement in students’ language learning achievements and outcomes but also for the advancement of mobile technology in language learning.

Moving Up without Losing Your Way

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer Morton
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
College Students ◽  
Social Mobility ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Upward Mobility ◽  
Ethical Dilemmas ◽  
Sense Of Self ◽  
College Experience ◽  
Career Opportunities ◽  
Community Finding

Upward mobility through the path of higher education has been an article of faith for generations of working-class, low-income, and immigrant college students. While we know this path usually entails financial sacrifices and hard work, very little attention has been paid to the deep personal compromises such students have to make as they enter worlds vastly different from their own. Measuring the true cost of higher education for those from disadvantaged backgrounds, this book looks at the ethical dilemmas of upward mobility—the broken ties with family and friends, the severed connections with former communities, and the loss of identity—faced by students as they strive to earn a successful place in society. The book reframes the college experience, factoring in not just educational and career opportunities but also essential relationships with family, friends, and community. Finding that student strivers tend to give up the latter for the former, negating their sense of self, the book seeks to reverse this course. It urges educators to empower students with a new narrative of upward mobility—one that honestly situates ethical costs in historical, social, and economic contexts and that allows students to make informed decisions for themselves. The book paves a hopeful road so that students might achieve social mobility while retaining their best selves.

Cultural Values Influence Mental-Health Help-Seeking in Asian and Latinx College Students

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elayne Zhou ◽  
Yena Kyeong ◽  
Cecilia Cheung ◽  
Kalina Michalska;Michalska
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
College Students ◽  
Cultural Values ◽  
Mental Health Treatment ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Negative Attitudes ◽  
Help Seeking Behaviors ◽  
Seeking Behavior ◽  
Ethnic Group Membership

The current study examined the influence of cultural values on mental health attitudes and help-seeking behaviors in college students of diverse ethnic backgrounds. Asian and Latinx college students (N = 159) completed an online survey in which they reported their adherence to cultural values and general attitudes towards mental health and help-seeking behavior. Factor analysis revealed two common factors of cultural values irrespective of ethnic background: Interdependent Orientation (IO) and Cultural Obligation (CO). Regardless of ethnicity, the more students endorsed IO values, the less likely they were to perceive a need for mental health treatment. IO value adherence also predicted more negative attitudes towards mental health. CO values were not predictive of perceived need or help-seeking behaviors. Findings highlight the importance of assessing certain cultural values independently from ethnicity and considering how the multidimensionality of culture may help explain shared mental health behaviors across ethnic group membership.

Leadership, Academic Major, and the Career Choices of College Students

NASPA Journal ◽  
1992 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 114-120
Author(s):  
Scott M. Preissler ◽  
Thomas D. Hadley
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
Career Choices ◽  
Academic Major

An Assessment of the Cues College Students Interpret From a Sexual Partner to Determine They Are Refusing

2021 ◽  
pp. 088626052199793
Author(s):  
Tiffany L. Marcantonio ◽  
Danny Valdez ◽  
Kristen N. Jozkowski
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
College Students ◽  
Sexual Partner ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
The United States ◽  
Sexual Partners ◽  
Sexual Scripts ◽  
Nonverbal Cues ◽  
Sexual Experiences ◽  
Verbal Cues

The purpose of this study was to assess the cues college students use to determine a sexual partner is refusing vaginal-penile sex (i.e., refusal interpretations). As a secondary aim, we explored the influence of item wording ( not willing/non-consent vs refusal) on college students’ self-reported refusal interpretations. A sample of 175 college students from Canada and the United States completed an open-ended online survey where they were randomly assigned to one of two wording conditions ( not willing/non-consent vs refusal); students were then prompted to write about the cues they used to interpret their partner was refusing. An inductive coding procedure was used to analyze open-ended data. Themes included explicit and implicit verbal and nonverbal cues. The refusal condition elicited more explicit and implicit nonverbal cues than the not willing/non-consent condition. Frequency results suggested men reported interpreting more explicit and implicit verbal cues. Women reported interpreting more implicit nonverbal cues from their partner. Our findings reflect prior research and appear in line with traditional gender and sexual scripts. We recommend researchers consider using the word refusal when assessing the cues students interpret from their sexual partners as this wording choice may reflect college students’ sexual experiences more accurately.

scholarly journals Characteristics associated with changes in food security status among college students during the COVID-19 pandemic

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica Soldavini ◽  
Hazael Andrew ◽  
Maureen Berner
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
Food Security ◽  
Food Insecurity ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Individual Characteristics ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Food Security Status ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Security Module ◽  
Adult Food

Abstract The prevalence of food insecurity in the USA has increased since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic; however, past studies have not examined how the food security status of college students has been impacted. The purpose of this study was to examine changes in the prevalence of food insecurity; determine the proportion of students experiencing a change in food security status; and identify characteristics associated with changes in food security status from before to during the COVID-19 pandemic among a sample of college students. We administered a cross-sectional online survey to students from a large public university in the Southeastern USA. The 10-item U.S. Adult Food Security Module was used to assess food security status during the spring 2020 semester both before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, and students self-reported a variety of individual characteristics. The overall prevalence of food insecurity increased by approximately one-third during the spring 2020 semester from before to during the COVID-19 pandemic. When examining the types of changes in food security status experienced by students, 12% improved, 68% stayed the same, and 20% worsened. A variety of characteristics were associated with an improvement or worsening of food security status category from before to during the pandemic. Similar to what is seen in other reports, we found that the overall proportion of college students in our sample experiencing food insecurity increased during the COVID-19 pandemic; however, some students showed improvements in food security status. Approaches for addressing food insecurity during and beyond the pandemic are needed.

Evaluating the Association Between Artificial Sweetener Intake and Indicators of Stress and Anxiety

2021 ◽  
pp. 0272684X2110221
Author(s):  
Benjamin Miller ◽  
Paul Branscum
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
Food Frequency Questionnaire ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Anxiety Reduction ◽  
Artificial Sweetener ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Food Frequency ◽  
Very High

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association between non-nutritive sweetener (NNS) consumption and stress and anxiety, among a sample of college students. Two-hundred and twenty-seven students from a large mid-western university participated in this cross-sectional study. Students completed an online survey that evaluated NNS using a validated food frequency questionnaire. Stress and anxiety were evaluated using previously validated instruments. Most students reported very low/low/average concern for stress (63.9%), and had low/moderate anxiety (82.3%). Participants experiencing high and very high levels of stress had significantly higher NNS consumption compared to those with a very low and low risk, and concern for stress ( p < .046; d = 0.28). There was no difference however for NNS intake and anxiety. Reduction of artificial sweetener intake may be associated with stress levels among college students. However, more research is needed to examine any causal relationship between artificial sweetener intake and stress.

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