Master of Science / Counseling and Student Developement / Christy D. Craft / Students have many opportunities to familiarize themselves with their college after committing to a school. Institutions offer summer orientation and enrollment sessions, and many also offer extended orientation sessions that may include spending time in the residence halls or outdoor camps and activities. Upon arrival to campus, first year students are given a great deal of information about campus resources, culture and traditions. They may also have welcome week activities, first year seminar classes, learning communities, specialized housing accommodations,and a wealth of other opportunities to connect to the university. The purpose of this report is to explore both the unique challenges facing first year students and the varying support structures in place for them. To explore this topic, the unique needs facing first-year, residential students as it relates to student development and transition theories will be outlined. Focusing on institutional concerns, persistence will also be explored as a theoretical framework. Finally, to make this report relevant to Kansas State University, the first year programming efforts at twelve institutions will be synthesized and analyzed as a foundation for comparison. A proposal for potential programs at K-State will be presented.

The purpose of this comparative study was to determine the relationship of a First-Year Seminar course as well as student entry demographics to retention and graduation rates at community college in Tennessee. In the fall of 2013, the enrollment for the participating college was 3,790 with a mean composite ACT score of 18.9 and a mean GPA of 2.823. First-Year Experience programs at the community college consisted of First-Year Seminar (FYS), New Student Online Orientation (NSOO), New Student Advisement and Registration (NSAR), and mandatory academic advisement. For the purpose of this study the researcher examined only the First-Year Seminar course. The First-Year Seminar course was designed to provide students with strategies to further develop academic as well as life management skills. The course incorporated techniques to assist students in a successful beginning at the institution. Major topics focused on goal setting, institutional resources and activities, time management, basic study strategies including note-taking and test-taking, development of an academic plan, developing relationships, stress management, and career exploration. The populations studied were students who participated in a First-Year Seminar course and students who did not participate in a First-Year Seminar course. Those students who participated in the First-Year Seminar course were compared to the overall population of students prior to the implementation of mandatory participation in the first-year programs. The research questions in this study were addressed through data analysis using chi-square two-way contingency table. Archival data were retrieved from the institutions data system, about students who participated in a First-Year Seminar course and those students who did not participate. Additional demographic information were collected on student gender, age, and financial aid status. The findings in the study indicated there were significantly higher rates of retention for those students who participated in a First-Year Seminar course than those students who did not participate in a First-Year Seminar course. In regards to gender, age, and financial aid status overall retention rates were significantly higher for those students who participated in a First-Year Seminar course. The findings however did not indicate a significant correlation between participation in a First-Year Seminar course and graduation rates.

College students often enter college academically unprepared, as evidenced by low high school cumulative GPAs or poor SAT scores. In response to this problem, administrators at a 4-year university in the Mid-Atlantic region of the Unites States implemented an intensive, semester-long program to introduce and acclimate conditionally admitted students to the rigors of collegiate life. The purpose of this study was to understand how to assist students in moving from Year 1 to full admission and beyond. In accordance with Bandura's reciprocal causation of social cognitive theory model, the research questions centered on conditionally admitted students' descriptions of their experiences with intensive, semester-long program participation. The qualitative case study used data collected from 10 semistructured interviews with conditional admission program student participants. Data analysis consisted of initial coding, axial coding, and iterative recategorization to identify the key findings. Among the findings were that the study site lacked strong faculty-student engagement and that students had mixed feelings regarding the seminar course being helpful. However, they found the university environment conducive to learning, leading them to stay. A white paper provided potential solutions to administrators, including increased faculty-student engagement and more meaningful required seminars for first-year conditionally admitted students. This study and the subsequent project may create positive social change by expanding degree achievement for underprepared, conditionally admitted college students, which thus increases opportunities for upward social mobility.

The purpose of this study was to examine the association between the retention rate and 9 firstyear student programs at Liberal Arts Colleges in the Mountain South, a region in the southern Appalachian Mountains of the United States. Nine first-year programs were studied: Summer Bridge Programs, Preterm Orientation, Outdoor Adventure Orientation, Targeted Seminars, Learning Communities, Early Warning/Early Alert Systems, Service Learning, Undergraduate Research, and Assessment. The data for this study were accessed via the college database of The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES, 2013). Chi Square tests were used for analysis to identify associations between first-year student retention and the presence of each of the 9 programs. The results indicated that the presence of each of the 9 first-year programs was not significantly related to first-year student retention.