Feeling a part of a university community is an important factor in college students' success, yet little is known about how transfer students construct a sense of community at their new institutions. Drawing from surveys and interviews of transfer students at a highly selective university, we used a multi-method approach to understand the elements…

Community colleges currently enroll over one-third of all undergraduates and serve as the gateway to postsecondary education for increasing numbers of Americans in the 21st century, especially students of color. A significant portion of community college students aspire to transfer to a four-year college or university, but only 23% to 40% make…

This quantitative study examined how social capital and finances influenced community college students' intent to transfer to a four-year institution within STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) fields. Focusing on the community college students enrolled in a rural midwestern state, the authors employed a structural equation modeling…

Academic confidence cultivated within the context of learning communities may be an important key to student success. This study examined the structural relationships of four constructs on academic performance and persistence for summer bridge learning community (SBLC) and non-SBLC members. Constructs included: 1) student background; 2) academic…

Academic confidence cultivated within the context of learning communities may be an important key to student success. This study examined the structural relationships of four constructs on academic performance and persistence for summer bridge learning community (SBLC) and non-SBLC members. Constructs included (1) student background, (2) academic…

This is the final report of the National Evaluation of Student Support Services (SSS). SSS is one of eight federally funded grant programs that are administered as part of the Federal TRIO Programs within the U.S. Department of Education (ED). The SSS program, in particular, focuses on students while they are enrolled in college. In general, SSS…

As more students enroll at community colleges, questions are raised about whether learning is the same in the two- and four-year sectors, both overall and for sub-groups, and whether effects of student backgrounds and college experiences on learning are similar. This study used structural equation modeling with CCSSE and NSSE data from a sample…