Many degree-seeking college students struggle academically and ultimately never graduate. Academic challenges and persistence within the major are especially salient issues for students who major in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Academic probation serves as a means for informing students that they are at risk of dismissal, and…

Despite the relevance of academic advising to the college student experience, there is little research to define the role of academic advisors in leadership education. This study uses qualitative case study research to explore the role of the academic advisor in the leadership education process within institutions of higher education. The findings…

This mixed-methods study sought to determine the effectiveness of advising programs and best practices to use when assisting students. The study reviewed the perspective of advisors pertaining to their preparedness to assist students and the perspective of student satisfaction with the advising received. Both quantitative and qualitative data were…

Challenges abound in providing accurate and useful information to prospective and declared psychology majors about their career options and how to make decisions that will lead to satisfying and rewarding postgraduate lives. One component of this challenge is that by majoring in psychology, career affordances (i.e., the opportunities and…

Nontraditional women students, defined as older than 24 years, parents, or veterans, compose a fast-growing higher education population. Many face identity-related challenges when interacting with advisors. From 2 northeastern U.S. women's colleges, 42 nontraditional women students participated in phenomenological interviews focused on their…

This chapter focuses on institution-wide administration of advising and student success initiatives that address the complexity of higher education. The authors stress the importance of "staying the course" set by campus leadership (or setting a visionary agenda) while being responsible to stakeholders.

This study evaluates if persistence and completion rates increased after (a) establishing a centralized advising center for entering freshmen, (b) developing a mandatory new student orientation program, and (c) revising the curriculum for the college's student success course. For this study, persistence is defined as the percentage of first-time…

The College Completion Network conducted a systematic review of the research literature on advising strategies, summarizing the evidence for a wide range of advising strategies that have been the focus of research conducted during the past 2 decades. Simultaneously, the network conducted virtual focus groups with administrators at 47 2-year and…

The College Completion Network conducted a systematic review of the research on advising strategies that support college completion. Several key findings can inform policy and practice: Holistic and comprehensive interventions that combine multiple components to meet student needs improve student outcomes. These types of interventions provide…

Racial and ethnic minority student departure continues to be a major concern for higher education researchers, policy makers, and practitioners. We explore the role that academic advisors play in facilitating success among students of color at predominantly White institutions that have demonstrated effectiveness at generating ethnic minority…

Advising has the potential to serve as a lever for institutional transformation to advance equitable student success. Actualizing the promise of advising requires implementing evidence-based interventions and giving attention to institutional practices, technology products, policies, and change management strategies that can address key points…

Online learning in higher education continues to grow due to the flexibility it offers learners. Adult learners choose online learning at a rate much higher than residential learning. Adult learners in the online environment tend to be retained at a lower rate. To counteract lower retention rates, understanding student needs through targeted…

This study compares outcomes of prescriptive and developmental advising models by means of a posttest-only quasi-experimental design. Three outcomes of interest are degree progression, student satisfaction with advising, and average course-pathway cost. Two years of archival records from first-time, full-time degree-seeking students (n = 96)…

Building on literature addressing doctoral student socialization and scientific research groups, we qualitatively explore the gendered nature of laboratory rotations for 54 women pursuing STEM doctorates. Using in-depth interviews and a feminist phenomenological approach, findings highlight how women (re)constructed strategies to select lab…

Despite underrepresentation patterns in women minorities in STEM fields, a growing number are completing degrees. Exploring factors which serve as contributors to success in science are critical to broaden participation. STEM college faculty can serve as key contributors to the success of these students and exploring ways that faculty support…