Graduate students' development as researchers is a key objective in higher education internationally. Research assistantships (RAships) nurture graduate students as novice researchers as they develop theoretical and methodological knowledge. However, few studies have investigated the ways institutional regulations, informal practices, and…

People studying an additional language in adult life do so through a diverse mix of self-directed and institutionally-situated efforts, extending over many years; and online and distance mode language learning offer increasingly flexible opportunities for formal study. Little is known, however, of the ways that long-term learners combine…

This paper uses the credits-attempted perspective--in the context of how many credits a student attempts in their first year of college--and reports on several related projects all intended to evaluate potential interventions to raise academic momentum among first-year community college students. The presentation contrasts non-experimental…

The purpose of this study was to select an institution that has mandated mentoring as part of its mission and to examine students' perceptions of the mentoring they received. The study selected Empire State College (ESC), a college that is part of the State of New York University system in the USA. ESC is an institution with a 36-year history of…

This study explores the dimensions of the work/life/study balance and its influence on student participation in higher education, through a case study of the experience of higher education students, studying both full time and part time, in a Scottish further education college. The experience of the students and the work/life/study challenges that…

A University of Northumbria (England) survey found that Britain's new emphasis on experiential and active learning in higher education is more problematic for part-time than full-time students, despite greater life and work experience. Greater attention to these students' needs, motivations, learning attitudes, and existing knowledge and skill…

Approaches to student financial aid that are used in Illinois are described. Illinois tries to respond to the separate priorities of guaranteeing both access and reasonable choice. Over 60 percent of students at public four-year colleges, and about 18 percent of students attending community colleges receive need-based aid. The need-based student…

A study of the transition of students to higher education in Victoria, Australia, is reported based on data supplied by the Victorian Universities Admissions Committee (VUAC), a mail survey of 1,300 applicants in 1980, and a series of extended interviews with a small number of applicants. A basic causal model for enrollment decisions (college…