According to higher education preparation standards, students who
complete master’s preparation programs in student affairs should not only be
acquiring skills and knowledge, they should be socialized into the field of student
affairs Master’s level preparation programs in college student personnel or
higher education leadership are often coupled with a graduate assistantship so
that students are able to obtain valuable theory-to-practice experience This
additional experience becomes complementary to the work the graduate student
is doing in the classroom and thus becomes a practical learning opportunity
After completing a preparation program, a former master’s student will
most likely move into an entry-level position in student affairs, such as residence
hall director, student activities coordinator, judicial affairs coordinator, or a
fraternity/sorority coordinator However, despite this common career pathway, there has been limited research regarding the role a student affairs graduate
assistantship plays in assisting students in their socialization and transition into
the field and how this prepares these new student affairs professionals for their
first position post-master’s degree
Thirteen new professionals in student affairs who graduated from two
preparation programs in the southeastern region of the United States participated
in this basic interpretive qualitative study The purpose of this basic interpretive
qualitative study was to examine and describe the experience of new student
affairs professionals who held a graduate assistantship in student affairs during
their graduate preparation program and the role, if any, the graduate
assistantship played in their perceptions of preparedness Based on the findings
of this study, the graduate assistantship in student affairs indeed plays a role in
the perceptions of preparedness of these new professionals The overarching
themes that emerged using Schlossberg’s (1984) transition theory as the
analytical lens were mentorship, hands-on experience, peer interactions, and
financial enticement The findings from this study align with and expand upon
the existing student affairs literature, and provide awareness to student affairs
practitioners and higher education leadership faculty on how to best support new
professionals as they transition into the field of student affairs / Includes bibliography / Dissertation (PhD)--Florida Atlantic University, 2016 / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fau.edu/oai:fau.digital.flvc.org:fau_33973 |
| Contributors | Byard, Lisa A Samuda (author), Laanan, Frankie Santos (Thesis advisor), Florida Atlantic University (Degree grantor), College of Education, Department of Educational Leadership and Research Methodology |
| Publisher | Florida Atlantic University |
| Source Sets | Florida Atlantic University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation, Text |
| Format | 172 p, application/pdf |
| Rights | Copyright © is held by the author with permission granted to Florida Atlantic University to digitize, archive and distribute this item for non-profit research and educational purposes Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions requires permission of the copyright holder, http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ |
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