Standing in the Doorway of Success

 At Risk Population  Growing Segment of the College Bound Population  Key to Enrollment Success for Many Institutions

 The Doorway  Cultural Differences  Who’s Values Will be Embraced? “Education is not about learning more, it’s about behaving differently.” - Ruskin

 Studied Freshmen vs Sophomores  Residential campuses/students only  41-question survey using 5-point Likert scale  Broke down freshmen Pre-registered from not returning  Purpose – to determine if there were differences in how these groups responded to questions

 Family ◦ 86% of all students maintained weekly contact  Importance of Financial Aid ◦ 57% of Freshmen vs 73% of Sophomores ◦ 24% of Freshmen did not know their debt level  Maintaining a Job ◦ 59% of Freshmen employed vs 75% of Sophomores  Outside Influence ◦ 50% of Freshmen had someone outside the family influence their decision to attend college

 Family & Friends  Work  Connection to Faculty/Campus  Academic Preparation  Career Counseling/Relevance

 Family and Friends ◦ Over 90% of all students reported their families were supportive of them attending college ◦ Over 90% reported their families continued to be supportive of attending college ◦ Sophomores more likely to have HS friends still enrolled in college (83% vs 64%)  Work ◦ 80% of all respondents worked ◦ Sophomores more likely to work only on campus (44% vs 27%)

 Connection to Faculty & Campus ◦ PR freshmen were more likely to believe their faculty advisor was concerned about their success ◦ More likely to believe most faculty were interested in their success ◦ More likely to think of themselves as campus citizens vs customers  Academic Preparation ◦ PR freshmen felt more academically prepared for college ◦ Once Enrolled PR freshmen gained confidence in their academic skills ◦ NR Freshmen confidence levels remained the same

 Career Counseling & Relevancy ◦ PR Freshmen were more likely to be enrolled in a major that suited their career goals ◦ More likely to understand the relevance of a college education to the real world

 First generation students remain close to family and friends in the first year  Work is important  We must build stronger connections with these students  Student issues are not one- dimensional  Academic skills and confidence are important  We must connect relevance of a college education

 We must understand the cultural transition  Connect appropriate advisors  Connect curriculum to real world relevance  Develop academic confidence