Work in Progress: An Initial Assessment of the Effect of the First Year Experience on Under-Represented Student Retention in Engineering

2006 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lorelle Meadows ◽  
Jana Nidiffer ◽  
Stephen Ball ◽  
Cinda-sue Davis ◽  
Cynthia Finelli ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Student Retention ◽  
First Year Experience ◽  
Initial Assessment ◽  
First Year ◽  
Work In Progress

Work in progress — Engineering Leadership Program: The first year experience

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elif Eda Miskioglu ◽  
Krishna S. Athreya ◽  
Nidhi Bhandari ◽  
Michael T. Kalkhoff ◽  
Diane T. Rover ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
First Year Experience ◽  
First Year ◽  
Leadership Program ◽  
Work In Progress

scholarly journals Beyond Attrition and Retention: Working With Students to Enhance the First Year Experience

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Natalia Gerodetti ◽  
Darren Nixon
Keyword(s):  
Student Retention ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
University Teaching ◽  
First Year Experience ◽  
First Year ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Attrition Rates ◽  
University Life ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Ontological Position

Student retention and attrition rates have been established as Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for course teams in the Higher Education landscape in the UK. Against this quantified (and neoliberal) auditable undertaking, in this paper we offer an examination of a set of alternative qualitative efforts which are intended to improve the first year student experience by helping students transition into their course, and university life more generally. Working with students to enhance the first year experience is at the centre of our ontological position and we draw heavily on the idea of a “long thin” induction which continues throughout the first year at university. We explore the benefits of facilitating ‘students as producers’ and incorporating ‘student intelligence’ into university teaching and learning practices before presenting a series of activities that are designed to help students transition successfully and build a strong course identity. Having offered students different ways of structured integration into the course we reflect on how these activites can help first-year students develop the kinds of skills and knowledge base that contributes to a better experience of the transition and acculturation into university life in all of its facets.

Where to Now for Research into the First Year Experience at University?

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
Leonie Rowan ◽  
Chris Bigum ◽  
Kevin Larkin
Keyword(s):  
Student Retention ◽  
Student Satisfaction ◽  
Large Body ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
First Year Experience ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
First Year ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Sociology Of Translation ◽  
Widespread Belief

Academics and administrators in higher education contexts increasingly invest time, energy and money in the creation and delivery of a positive “first year experience: (FYE)” a term commonly used to refer to a suite of initiatives intended to impact positively upon student satisfaction and maximise student retention. Various forms of technology feature prominently in the resultant programs: a situation which reflects a widespread belief that ‘flexible' and ‘online' learning environments have a major role to play in meeting the needs of contemporary students. Over the past 20 years decision making about how to create a ‘good' first year experience has been increasingly shaped by what is now a large body of scholarship. While this literature contains much that it is valuable it can also serve to limit research conducted in this area. Drawing upon insights from the sociology of translation this paper explores the hinterland of the FYE and the ways in which it might constrain the authors' research in this field. From this basis the authors propose a case for re-imagining and reassembling their research in this area in response to key challenges provided by actor-network theory. With reference to a small scale research project conducted at a one Australian university, they highlight the different data sets—and different realities—that a reassembled FYE research agenda requires them to attend to, and outline implications for future studies in this field.

scholarly journals Work in Progress: Immersive First-Year Experience for Bioengineering Curricula

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer Amos ◽  
Marcia Pool ◽  
Karin Jensen ◽  
John Vozenilek
Keyword(s):  
First Year Experience ◽  
First Year ◽  
Work In Progress

scholarly journals Work in Progress: Impacting Engineering First-year Student Retention Through a Nonconventional Engineering Learning Community

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sonia Bartolomei-Suarez ◽  
Manuel Jimenez ◽  
Luisa Guillemard ◽  
Oscar Suarez ◽  
Aidsa Santiago-Román ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Student Retention ◽  
Learning Community ◽  
First Year ◽  
Work In Progress ◽  
First Year Student

Effects of Hierarchical Mentoring on Freshman Retention in a Biology First-Year Experience Course

2018 ◽  
Vol 80 (3) ◽  
pp. 184-190
Author(s):  
Peter Cavnar ◽  
Claudia Stanny
Keyword(s):  
Student Retention ◽  
Best Practice ◽  
Retention Rates ◽  
High Rate ◽  
First Year Experience ◽  
First Year ◽  
Freshman Retention ◽  
Stem Students ◽  
Retention And Graduation Rates ◽  
The Impact

Higher education must improve student retention and graduation rates to meet increased demand for STEM degrees in the workforce projected for the next ten years. The high rate of attrition among STEM students entering college compels institutions to implement strategies that improve student retention because more states now employ performance-based funding models with increased pressures to improve student outcomes, such as first- and second-year retention rates. We piloted a two-year hierarchical mentoring model as part of a first-year experience course developed for biology students (BioSkills) to increase retention rates among first-time-in-college (FTIC) students. We describe the mentoring structure we adopted and how the design of BioSkills supports and educates future biology professionals. Our findings show that FTIC students who participated in this program earned significantly higher first-year GPAs and were retained at higher rates than students who did not participate, which documents the impact of BioSkills as a successful first-year intervention. However, we were surprised that the benefit of BioSkills was not replicated among under-represented minority (URM) students. We briefly speculate on explanations for this finding. Lastly, we offer best practice suggestions for future implementation.

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