Metabolomics applies multivariate statistical analysis to sets of high-resolution spectra taken over a population of biologically derived samples. The objective is to distinguish subpopulations within the overall sample population, and possibly also to identify biomarkers. While metabolomics has become part of the standard analytical toolbox in…

Research on academic achievement contrasting Black immigrant, second generation, and non-immigrant students as distinct groups is surprisingly sparse in the higher education literature. This study examined Black immigrant and second generation undergraduates from Africa and the Caribbean and non-immigrant Black American undergraduates, using the…

Expertise in searching and evaluating scientific literature is a requisite skill of trained scientists and science students, yet information literacy instruction varies greatly among institutions and programs. To ensure that science students acquire information literacy skills, robust methods of assessment are needed. Here, we describe a novel…

This study examined drinking patterns of three different college student groups: (a) intercollegiate athletes, (b) intramural/club athletes, and (c) nonathletes. Additionally, we investigated whether a relationship exists between drinking setting and risk of increased drinking. We analyzed data on the athletic involvement, drinking behaviors, and…

This study explored whether a predictive model of student loan default could be developed with data from an institution's three-year cohort default rate report. The study used borrower data provided by a large two-year community college. Independent variables under investigation included total undergraduate Stafford student loan debt, total number…

Community Service Learning (CSL) believes that university and colleges should incorporate community based service projects into courses. There are faculty and administrator supporters who argue for such proposals to require community service learning components into classes, but there are also faculty and administrator critics of such proposals.…

Using cross-sectional data, we examined the financial information sources, financial knowledge, and financial practices of young adults, many of whom are first generation college students, ethnic minorities, and immigrants or children of immigrants. Participants (n = 1,249) were undergraduate students at a large regional comprehensive university.…

Problem solving is a highly valued skill in chemistry. Courses within this discipline place a substantial emphasis on problem-solving performance and tend to weigh such performance heavily in assessments of learning. Researchers have dedicated considerable effort investigating individual factors that influence problem-solving performance. The…

We present a data set consisting of user profile data for 59,946 San Francisco OkCupid users (a free online dating website) from June 2012. The data set includes typical user information, lifestyle variables, and text responses to 10 essay questions. We present four example analyses suitable for use in undergraduate introductory probability and…

Although there is agreement that graduating students should be able to function effectively in an increasingly diverse society, there is reasonable difference of opinion regarding how that goal should be accomplished and how progress should be measured. The most pervasive and appealing conventional wisdom is that positive attitudes and behaviors…

The census survey of undergraduates attending a major research university system presents an opportunity to measure both disciplinary and institutional differences in students' academic experience. Results from nearly 60,000 responses (38% response rate) from the 2006 administration found greater variance among majors within an institution than…

The assertion that there are a limited set of generalizable good educational practices (Chickering & Gamson, 1987) with a common model of preferred active student engagement in learning (Kuh, 2001) is appealing to those responsible for simply stated institutional outcomes and to the faculty who teach in fields that espouse the same practices…

Introduction: A variety of studies has shown that the type of goal orientation determines students' cognitive and behavioral reactions as well as their educational performance (e.g. Ames 1992, Ames/Archer 1988, Valle et al. 2003). Contrary to many views, this study perceives goal orientation as a multidimensional construct with different…