Among the theories that have been advanced for improving the participation of students in STEM is the postulation that family involvement in students' schooling is critical, as early as the precollege years. The prevalence of knowledge about the importance of familial support for students' success in STEM fields notwithstanding, the corpus of…

While researchers and policymakers have sought to understand factors that affect research productivity of universities and entrepreneurship activities of graduates, we know little about the graduates in the workforce who engage in knowledge creation. This study employs data from an alumni impact survey (N = 12,504) and alumni database of a large…

From 2017-2021, Mississippi State University's Department of Chemistry has hosted a 10-week summer Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program, focused on research related to food, energy, and water security topics. The goals of this program were to train students by providing an intensive research experience, recruit minority and…

This study examined undergraduate survey responses about a Title V center at a research university. Using a counterspaces framework, we analyzed the ways in which this Title V center provided first-generation and minoritized college students with academic and non-academic supports and a sense of community and belonging. Analyses illustrated that…

Undocumented college students are often simultaneously navigating multiple social, financial, educational, and legal barriers. The ways in which they navigate their educational journeys are inherently implicated in how they manage the disclosure of their legal status, but few investigations to date have explicitly examined undocumented students'…

A college degree has been shown to decrease the income gap, but disadvantaged students are at a greater risk of dropping out of college. This study explores meaning-making of students in an educational opportunity program (EOP), the Search for Education Elevation and Knowledge (SEEK) in the City University of New York system. It is important to…

The aim of the study was to investigate the differences between the academic success and the factors contributing to the success of first- and continuous-generation students in higher education within the South African context. Continuous-generation students achieved significantly higher levels of academic success and reported higher levels of…

Increasing diversity on college campuses suggests faculty need to develop ways of teaching diverse students. This study describes the teaching strategies of two sociology professors at a Hispanic-Serving Institution. Through observations, syllabi analysis, and interviews with the faculty and 18 racially and ethnically diverse first-generation…

Retention of 1st-year students is a challenge facing higher education and remains relevant for all stakeholders. Low persistence negatively affects individual students, institutions, and society as a whole. Nationally, a significant number of students have reported working while in college, particularly 1st-generation, low socioeconomic status…

The number of first-generation college students entering into the higher education system continues to increase; many of these first-generation college students enroll in college without the necessary tools and skill sets needed to foster their academic and social success. Previous research has focused on the types of institutions first-generation…

This study aimed to take asset-based approach and identify Latino male students who were persisting in college, and to identify what strategies made them successful. This qualitative study consulted Tinto's revised student departure model, Bourdieu's theory of cultural capital, as well as Yosso's theory of community cultural wealth. A…

The expression 'student success' has gained traction in the university sector and has been applied to various aspects of the higher education (HE) learning trajectory. Yet, 'success' is an amorphous term that means distinctive things to various stakeholders in any educational undertaking. When the literature on this field is examined, it is…

Familial and social experiences shape college transitions of first-year, first-generation college students who are foster youth. This chapter describes these experiences and offers recommendations to enhance support for foster youth in college.

Background: Previous research has shown that, when succeeding in higher education, first-generation (FG) students endorse more performance-avoidance goals (i.e., the fear of performing poorly) than continuing-generation (CG) students. Aims: In this study, individual mobility is examined as a predictor of performance-avoidance goal endorsement. It…

This study employs an anti-deficit perspective in exploring how the parents of first generation, low-income African American students positively influence their child's choice to attend college. This study examines the positive direct and indirect actions taken by African American parents with limited monetary resources to encourage their child to…