Background: English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) students, enrolled in health care tertiary education, have lower graduation rates compared with English native speakers. The demographic profile of most western countries is continuously changing and therefore this issue has became a concern especially for those countries which are confronted with an acute health care workforce shortage. One of the most important predictors in student retention is their perception of academic success. The purpose of this study was to explore ESOL health undergraduate students’ perceptions of campus climate, faculty and peer social support, and sought to determine whether or not there is a relationship between these factors and ESOL students’ perception academic success. Methods: The study was carried out at Auckland University of Technology (AUT). The inclusion criteria for this study were: undergraduate students enrolled with the Faculty of Health and Environmental Sciences, having other than English as their first language, and studying predominantely on one of AUT University’s campuses, namely Akoranga campus. The study implemented had a cross-sectional design using a novel purpose built electronic survey. ESOL health undergraduate students’ insights were explored using a 22-item web-based survey consisting of three scales: peer and faculty support, campus climate, and academic success. The content validity and realiability of each scale were tested. The study questionnaire was made available online to all ESOL health undergraduate students willing to participate in the research. Generalized estimating equations were used to test the study hypothesis. Six related binary outcome variables, measuring perceptions of academic success, were included in the analyses. Results: Twenty-seven ESOL health undergraduate students from a variety of health undergraduate programs agreed to participate in the research. The majority of participants were of Asian ethnicity with ages between 21 and 30 years and had completed their secondary education overseas. The GEE analyses showed that campus climate was significantly associated with academic success, p-value=0.01, but peer and faculty support was not, p-value=0.07. The estimated odds ratio (OR) for the campus climate relationship implies that for every unit increase in the first principal component factor for campus climate, the odds that a participant agreed with the academic success scale decreased by 0.43 (95% CI: 0.30, 0.84). The only open-ended question of the survey revealed that 39% of the participants did not intend to leave the faculty before graduation, while 17% saw the “lack of support” as a possible reason for abandoning the university without a degree. Conclusion: ESOL undergraduate students’ perception of campus climate may have an influence on their perception of academic success. Students’ perception of peer and faculty support was not significantly associated with academic success, but 17% of respondents to the open-ended question saw “lack of support” as a possible reason to leave the course before graduation. The findings were hampered by the small sample of ESOL students recruited.

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Dramatic shift s in U.S. culture surrounding the acceptance of sexual minorities have occurred within the last five years. Yet, sexual minorities experience minority stress associated with a host of negative life outcomes. We focus on two studies (one conducted in 2011/12 and one in 2015) on university campus climate as a source of minority stress. Gauging social climate like a temperature thermometer (0=cool/rejecting-100=warm/accepting), and by attitudes of straight individuals, results of Study 1 showed a moderate campus climate for LGB identity (M = 65) with no variation by self-identification among 1101 straight and 133 sexual minority participants. Attitudes of straight participants predicted minority stress (concealment, anticipated discrimination, perceived public stigma) of sexual minorities. Study 2 was entitled “Campus PRIDE” (Perceptions Related to Identity and Diversity in the Environment). Results from 697 straight and 206 sexual minorities, showed climate varied depending on identity of focus and by self-identification as sexual minority (all t tests p<.05). Findings are discussed in light of methodological differences, backlash to advances in rights, intersections of sexual identity, gender, and race, and the process of getting “buy-in” from university administrators to conduct a university-wide climate survey.

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This study measures the campus climate for Asian Americans on a college campus before and after tragic events, and places it in the context of what is known about the social location of Asian American students nationally. Using a multi-method approach, including in-depth interviews supplemented by data from content analyses and surveys, it addresses perceptions of Asian American students about themselves and the campus climate. In doing so it addresses the more general question of minority stereotyping and strategies taken by minority groups to compensate for such stereotypes. Findings from this study suggest that the campus climate for Asian American undergraduates appears to be welcoming, and respondents do not report stress emanating from their 'model minority' status. Instead, they embrace and offer full-support for the 'model minority' stereotype. / Ph. D.

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have been studied for the last two decades and are associated with a large number of mental health problems. However, existing research has yet to explore the underlying mechanisms that might affect the relationship between ACEs and mental health outcomes, particularly in terms of contextual influence. The present study examined the individual and conjoint effects of ACEs, coping, and campus climate on depressive and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, exploring the moderating effects of coping and campus climate among a diverse sample of young adults. In addition to that, racial/ethnic identity and gender/sexual identity were tested as a potential moderator in the relationship among ACEs, coping strategies, campus climate and mental health outcomes, in which the relationship was hypothesized to be different depending on one’s identity. Data for this study were collected from 423 college students who completed a set of questionnaires. The survey assessed socio-demographic variables, ACEs, coping strategies, campus climate, depressive, and PTSD symptoms. By examining the effects of ACEs, campus climate, coping, and individual identity on mental health outcomes simultaneously, the study results suggest that coping and campus climate moderate the relationship between ACEs and PTSD, and it varies depending on individual identity. The findings highlight the importance of culturally sensitive and appropriate interventions and services for diverse college students who are at elevated risk for the development of mental health problems.

The purpose of this study was to examine national survey data from across the United States for respondents from two-year community colleges. Historically little empirical evidence exists in the literature about this population of students who identity as sexual minorities. The study begins with a historical overview of the LGBTQ rights movement. This provides a baseline for why studies including this invisible minority group are important and especially timely for two-year college campuses. Literature is barrowed from four-year college and university studies. Data were analyzed using the Rasch Partial Credit model. This analysis included testing for data-fit to the model, evaluation of items which did not fit the model, item mapping, differential functioning based on sexual identity, and standard descriptive statistics. The aim of this analysis was to determine if harassment, discrimination, and violence on campus towards sexual minority students occur and attempt to assess the prevalence of such activities. Results indicate that there doesn’t exist differences in responses between male and female participants. However, differences exist related to campus perceptions for sexual minority students and their non-minority (heterosexual) peers.

This qualitative study examined the lived experiences of Queer students at ABC Community College. Using phenomenology as its guiding framework, transcribed interviews were analyzed in order to seek the phenomenon of the experience. Examination of the literature suggested that Queer students’ experiences of discrimination could have a negative impact on academic achievement and that inclusive and affirming spaces have the opposite effect. Further, Queer students search for affirming spaces from their faculty and peers, and the engagement these spaces provide may be good prognosticator academic achievement. When students are provided with inclusive spaces, they may be more likely to come out, live openly, and represent themselves authentically (Kosciw J. G., Greytak, Palmer, & Boesen, 2014). Other researchers are encouraged to replicate the study with a larger number of participants, using a combination of qualitative and quantitative research methods.

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