Supporting students during the transition to university in COVID-19: Five key considerations and recommendations for educators

As coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) continues to disrupt pretertiary education provision and examinations in the United Kingdom, urgent consideration must be given to how best to support the 2021–2022 cohort of incoming undergraduate students to higher education. In this paper, we draw upon the “Five Sense of Student Success” model to highlight five key evidence-based, psychology-informed considerations that higher education educators should be attentive to when preparing for the next academic year. These include the challenge in helping students to reacclimatize to academic work following a period of prolonged educational disruption, supporting students to access the “hidden curriculum” of higher education, negotiating mental health consequences of COVID-19, and remaining sensitive to inequalities of educational provision that students have experienced as a result of COVID-19. We provide evidence-based, psychology-informed recommendations to each of these considerations.

Supporting students during the transition to university in COVID-19: 5 key considerations and recommendations

As COVID-19 continues to disrupt pre-tertiary education provision and examinations in the UK, urgent consideration must be given to how best to support the 2021-2022 cohort of incoming undergraduate students to Higher Education. In this paper, we draw upon the ‘Five Sense of Student Success’ model to highlight five key evidence-based considerations that Higher Education educators should be attentive to when preparing for the next academic year. These include: the challenge in helping students to reacclimatise to academic work following a period of prolonged educational disruption, supporting students to access the ‘hidden curriculum’ of Higher Education, negotiating mental health consequences of COVID-19, and remaining sensitive to inequalities of educational provision that students have experienced as a result of COVID-19. We provide evidence-based recommendations to each of these considerations.

Study Abroad Effect on Retention and Student Success

This chapter discusses the positive correlations between study abroad and student success broadly, as well as the ways in which study abroad programs operate from a student success model. Both may help influence home-campus practitioners in working with all students. First, this chapter will first focus on the history of study abroad within higher education to contextualize it specifically relating to retention and student success. Second, the chapter will focus on the positive, and not often discussed, positive relationship between student retention and graduation rates correlated to study abroad. Third will be a section devoted to exploring the research findings of the high-impact nature of study abroad linked to learning outcomes, as data shows deep student learning, including self-reflection, which could be indicators of student success. Finally, the chapter will draw correlations between these topics and international on-site models of student success to support this transformational and challenging experience for students.