<p> This applied mixed method research study was undertaken to identify the college choice factors influential in the college choice decision-making processes of high school seniors, and retrospectively, college freshmen, in one rural NC public school system. Current high school seniors were surveyed; Randolph Community College freshmen, who were graduates of the same high school system, were interviewed. Quantitative data analysis was performed using chi square testing. Standard protocol for qualitative data collection and analysis was observed. </p><p> The most important finding of the study was the need for the college to understand the decision processes of millennials in college choice, while applying that generational information to the marketing and outreach strategies to which millennials resonate. In addition to targeted marketing to millennial high school seniors, results indicated program of study expansion was needed to increase the college&rsquo;s market penetration of high school graduates. Findings will be used to increase the market penetration of the local community college with its service area&rsquo;s high school graduates.</p>

The purpose of this study is to examine the role and effect of higher education on Chicana's religious beliefs and practices. It has been noted by Chicana scholars Theresa Delgadillo (2003) and Jeanette Rodriguez (2004) that Chicana students negotiate their religious and cultural ways of knowing with the new environment and ideas of a University. This thesis examines how this negotiation occurs and how Chicana students understand and create their religious identity during their college years.Using short questionnaires and focus groups, twenty undergraduate Chicana women participated in this research. Major findings for this study indicate that Chicana students are attending church less (55%) and negotiating Catholicism to form and practice their own Mestiza spirituality. The women utilize a mestiza spirituality that incorporates prayer, as well as indigenous practices and beliefs to practice their faith.

Interpersonal violence against women is a prevalent and often accepted part of North American life. Statistics from both Canada and the United States indicate that one-half of North American women have experienced at least one incident of sexual or physical violence that affects their physical, emotional, and/or mental health. Governments and institutions, including educational institutions, minimize the prevalence of violence and the often debilitating effects it can have on women, silencing the voices of women who have experienced violence, and obscuring the need for intervention and prevention. The primary objective of this study was to examine the connections between women's experiences with interpersonal violence and their educational experiences in graduate school. More generally, I hoped to add to the limited information about how violence affects learning. I interviewed 11 female graduate students who had experienced interpersonal violence about their experiences in graduate school. The research revealed that the participants connected their experiences with interpersonal violence to their graduate school experiences through the effects of unequal relations of power and of silencing on their self-confidence and self-determination. They also recognized graduate school as a place where they were sometimes able to recover a sense of voice and personal authority that they felt was "lost" in their violent interpersonal relationship(s). The study findings point to the need for university policy makers and administrators, faculty, and students to understand the effects that experiencing violence may have on women's learning. At the most basic level, policy makers and administrators must think about the gendered implications when creating policies and suggesting strategies for implementation. In addition, pedagogical policies and practices, including the graduate supervisory model, need to be examined from a gendered perspective for issues of power and the possible abuse(s) of power. Through recognizing the prevalence and effects of interpersonal violence against women and addressing how relations of power in graduate school programs may reflect those experiences and affect women's learning, institutions of higher education will increase opportunities for female students and others affected by violence, to be successful, and will strengthen the learning of all students.

On September 13, 2008, Hurricane Ike, a huge storm with tropical storm force or greater winds extending 275 miles from the eye, made landfall in Galveston, Texas submerging over 75% of the city. In response to this crisis, Texas A&M University at Galveston, a small ocean oriented satellite school of 2000 students, deployed a never-before-attempted business continuity plan, relocating 91% of the student body and campus operations 150 miles inland to the mother campus of Texas A&M University in nine days. As a result, Texas A&M University at Galveston successfully weathered the storm and enjoyed a record enrollment the following spring semester. This dissertation utilized a case study methodology to look at the approach/planning process that went into the plan, the deployment of the plan, and the learning that took place throughout the crisis. In addition, the case study was considered through the use of a performance management system, specifically the Quality Texas Foundation - Engagement Level Criteria based on the Malcom Baldrige Quality Management Criteria, to determine whether this criteria might be appropriate for assessing future crisis response in higher education. All Texas A&M University at Galveston crisis team members were interviewed using the criteria to guide the discussion. The study revealed that the approach taken by the Texas A&M University at Galveston crisis team members was very timely in that a number of significant changes were implemented in the plan only a year prior to Hurricane Ike, initiated in response to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita’s impact on other universities. Furthermore while the approach outlined a plan that guided the relocation effort, significant areas that were not directly related to the relocation of the students, such as plans for the workforce not directly involved in the relocation and community involvement, were not adequately addressed. In deployment of the plan, the development of guiding principles to further align the thousands of decisions that would take place proved critical. The study further identified that the crisis team members incorporated learning into the approach and deployment of the plan, and established a very comprehensive assessment process immediately after the crisis. The study also revealed a number of valuable lessons for practice for use by other institutions as they develop their own crisis management plans. Lastly, the Quality Texas Foundation - Engagement Level Criteria provided a solid platform for crisis management assessment in higher education, particularly in large scale disaster type crises.

This study explored the educational benefits of institutional efforts to internationalize education as perceived and experienced by domestic and international undergraduate students at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. The intent of the study was to (1) understand the ways in which students reported benefiting from the range of programs and activities associated with Internationalization-at-Home initiatives, and (2) ascertain which of the three dominant internationalization frameworks (Global Competency, Academic Capitalism, and Academic Colonialism) likely inform the institutional practices experienced by these students. Using a social-constructivist approach, this qualitative study employed an inter-related set of data collection instruments and processes including a web-based survey, focus group interview, and document analysis. Senior undergraduate students from the faculties of Arts and Science, Applied Science and School of Business, participated in the study which was carried out in 2007. Four themes emerged from the analysis of data generated by the web-based survey and the focus group interview. Expressed as benefits to either the students and/or to the institution itself, these themes include: (1) a broadened knowledge and understanding of other nations, cultures, and global issues; (2) networking and the development of social and emotional skills; (3) the generation of revenue; and (4) contributing to the reproduction of Western knowledge. Overall, these themes collectively speak to the institution’s internationalization goals, and a measure of commitment to more than one internationalization goal, with less than a half of the student participants reporting that developing global competence was the main benefit derived. / Thesis (Master, Education) -- Queen's University, 2008-01-28 22:42:16.612

The under-representation of women in science-related fields has serious economic and social implications as Canada is confronted by a shortage of scientists especially in engineering and the applied sciences. The purpose of this study was to investigate similarities and differences between second-year female college students (N = 79) who intend to pursue pure and applied sciences (PAS), and their male counterparts (N = 81), and between PAS females and females who intend to pursue health sciences (HS) (N = 85). The study investigated the relative importance of motivational, self-concept-related, and sociopsychological variables on women's science college majors. The following measures were administered once: (1) Educational Aspiration Questionnaire, (2) Mastery Scale (Farmer, 1981), (3) Strong-Campbell Interest Inventory (Hansen & Campbell, 1985), (4) Ability and Effort Attribution Measure (Farmer, 1981), (5) Attitudes Toward Women Scale (Spence, Helmreich & Stapp, 1973), (6) Parent, Teacher, and Counsellor Support Scales, respectively (Farmer, 1981). The Stated Occupational Questionnaire was administered twice, three months apart. Results indicated that females in PAS had more liberal attitudes toward women, had more interests in medical sciences and services, and had fewer interests in mechanical activities and physical sciences than the males. However, the overall statistical analyses indicated far more similarities than differences between females and males in PAS, and also between females in PAS and HS except in the area of measured interests. While further research on the above variables over time is warranted, these findings have important implications for counselling psychologists.

<p>This research is an evaluative case study of transformation in a Historically White University in South Africa. The research occurs within the context of redress against the inequality and exclusion created by the legacy of apartheid. The research is a qualitative and quantinative study. it is based on based on desk research and include a literature review. Internet search as well as an analysis of key organisational and policy context documents such as reports, projects and surveys are used. semi-structured interviews was held with a sample of staff.</p>

<p>The study examines the relationship of these institutions with the University of Botswana within the affiliation system. The issues that were investigated were related to the affiliation system in general, and whether it was beneficial to both the University of Botswana and the affiliated institutions. It was found from the study that the relationship is a symbiotic one. Furthermore, the study looked into the articulation of the programmes of the affiliated institutions with those of the University of Botswana. The issue of the level at which diplomates from the Affiliated Institutions join a degree programme at the University of Botswana was also discussed. The current system is that after three years of doing a diploma at an affiliated institution, the diplomate will join a degree programme at the University of Botswana at year two with a diploma that was awarded by the University of Botswana. As a result the diplomate will spend three more years on the degree programme. Moreover, the issue of semesterising the affiliated institutions&rsquo / programmes, like those of the University of Botswana, was also looked into. Another issue considered was that of monitoring Quality Assurance in the affiliated institutions by the University of Botswana.</p>

Higher education institutions are continuously called upon by society to prepare students to be engaged citizens. Leadership is a core component to an individual being an actively engaged citizen. How do college students learn and develop leadership skills? How do college students learn and become civically engaged during their collegiate years? The purpose of this study was to identify campus environmental factors perceived to influence student leadership development and civic engagement that resulted in students’ perceived capacity to create positive social change. The study was conducted at a public four-year comprehensive higher education institution regionally located in the south central region of the United States. This qualitative study examined undergraduate students’ perceptions of personal leadership, influences on personal leadership development, and experiences with leadership and civic engagement. Following a naturalistic qualitative research method, interviews were conducted with ten undergraduate participants. Hoy and Miskel (2001) higher education organizations social system model and A Social Change Model of Leadership Development by the Higher Education Research Institute (1996) was used as conceptual frameworks for the study. The researcher determined from participant responses that peer and mentor relationships, community identity, personal identity, and democratic experiences were key environmental factors influencing student leadership development and civic engagement. Collegiate relationships with peers and faculty/staff mentors were a primary influential factor to participants’ university experiences resulting in their perceived knowledge of leadership and value for civic engagement. Identity as a campus community member and local community member was an environmental factor influencing participants’ commitment to civic engagement. Participants who were engaged in their personal cultural heritage articulated a deeper understanding of leadership and had a greater commitment to engaging with ethnically diverse populations. Participants who experienced the tenants of Democratic values in their academic and co-curricular experiences had a deeper sense of empowerment to create positive social change. The conclusions drawn from the researcher’s findings indicate the depth to which campus environmental factors influence student leadership development and civic engagement result in the level students’ build their leadership knowledge and capacity. The intent of the study was to gain an understanding of a campus environment through the constructed reality of individuals within the environment in order to determine factors that can be enhanced to improve leadership development and civic engagement.

A new phase of higher education in Bangladesh begun in the 1990s in which a remarkable transformation took place in the higher education system, largely based on market-driven economic forces. The government promulgated the Private University Act in 1992, which has been recently repealed in order to enact the new Private University Act 2010. It formulated a twenty-year Strategic Plan for Higher Education 2006-2026 (SPHE) in 2006. Consequently economic as well as political goals became drivers of the higher education system. This transformation informs a set of changes in the higher education sector. Often higher education institutions rely on private investment and the education they offer is shaped in line with the demands of global markets. This thesis explores the degree to which neoliberalism is a prominent feature of the higher education sector in Bangladesh, and the perception of key stakeholders about the influence of hegemonic neoliberal policy on their academic goals. This research is analytic and qualitative in nature. The overall approach is one of critical analysis, applying what is discussed in the international literature about neolibralisism to the higher education sector in Bangladesh. In the first instance I analysed documents from policy makers, commentators and news reporters in Bangladesh and related these to concepts in the internationals discussion of monetarism, global market economy and neolibralism. I then turned to a range of key participants in the sector itself and sought their perceptions through interview in order to fill out the initial document analysis and to ground this discussion in the experiences and understandings of people involved in the sector. The data from these interviews is accompanied by an analysis of further documents relating to the participants’ specific workplaces and once again aligned to the international discourse. The views of participants were sought through interview. A total of twenty-one participants were interviewed under six categories: the University Grant Commission (UGC) and government officials, owners of private universities, politicians and student activists, public and private university authorities and faculty members, education expert and sociologists, and public and private university students. In addition, I searched and analysed a range of documents as further tools for examining the context of the neoliberal agenda within higher education. The findings are structured into four subsections: neoliberal hegemony and ideological transformation of higher education, neoliberalism and knowledge-based economy, neoliberalism in the higher education sector and its structural consequences, and neoliberalism and resistance. The findings suggested that the neoliberal shift in the higher education sector in Bangladesh explicitly changes the overall socio-cultural, political and economical patterns of society. Not only are philosophical and pedagogical aspects of higher education changed through neoliberal policy agenda, but higher education also becomes a most expensive commodity in contemporary Bangladesh. Private universities have evolved with an underlying notion of privatisation of higher education, and the process of marketisation of higher education leads to a vocationalisation of higher education. The notion of 'academic entrepreneur' contributes to the development of discriminatory attitudes between students, and between teachers. Profit motivated higher education is adversely impacting on the critical insight of the young generation. The neoliberal policy shift within higher education sector is also leading to large-scale violence in higher education institutions.