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Assignment 4: Research Proposal

EDUC 500-Fall 2013
Dr. Mark Teoh
Seattle University
December 3, 2013

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The Effect of First Year Programs on College Student Retention and Graduation
1. Introduction
The transition from high school to college can have a big impact on first year students.
For many, it can be the first time they will be living away from home, family, and friends. It may
also be a culture shock for many if they are coming from homogenous cities and high schools.
The stress of academic rigor may also shock students and therefore, many first year students
have needs which require a range of support programs (Jamelske, 2008). The retention and
persistence to graduation rates of these students are a concern for higher education professionals.
In 2007, the average retention rate among all U.S. institutions of higher education from first year
to second year was 68.7 % (Jamelske, 2008). These statistics are one of the driving forces behind
the implementation of First Year Programs (FYP).
First year interventions have grown dramatically in the last two decades with
approximately 95% of U.S. 4-year institutions having some type of program (Jamelske, 2008).
The goal of FYPs is to assist students in acclimating to their new environment. First Year
Programs vary widely across institutions ranging from highly organized learning communities to
basic courses introducing students to college life (Jamelske 2008), still many have the same
goals in mind; to increase retention, student satisfaction, and persistence to graduation.
2. Literature Review
First Year Programs
First Year Programs vary by institution, and depending on the schools private or public
status, religious affiliation, location, and specific degrees offered, these factors influence how
they are implemented. FYPs cater to incoming students and therefore, because the student body
is always changing, there is no specific model for it. For this reason too, much of the research on
FYPs are unable to be generalized as they usually have one type of institution in mind. What

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you can expect is for FYPs to be implemented as one of these programs: Summer Bridge,
Orientation, Seminars, and Living Learning Communities. Although these may look different
depending on the institution, they all share these key components: peer interaction and
introduction to resources. Research shows that the most important step to becoming engaged and
involved is for students to interact with their peers (Styron & Roberts, 2009). Conversely, when
students have limited access to resources, their academic options are lessened or constrained
(Cabrera, Miner & Milem, 2011).
Recognizing that the first year is crucial to a students college experience; universities
strive to increase retention rates through innovative efforts like the First Year Programs
(Jamelske, 2008). Although most commonly offered at the start of school, First Year Programs
can also be part of the summer transition. Many schools offer Summer Bridge programs aimed at
introducing students to the campus community, academic demands, and their peers. Cabrera,
Miner & Milem (2011) identify these programs as being designed to help students with the
development of study and time management skills, the ability to utilize university services, while
providing exposure to college course work and faculty. Such exposure to college life at an early
stage can be significant in student retention and overall satisfaction.
Retention
There are many reasons why individuals attend college and why institutions work
diligently on the retention of these students. One of the most important reasons is that college is
a means to attain wealthfor both the student and the institution. Lifetime earnings for someone
with a bachelors degree were estimated to be nearly twice that of someone with only a high
school diploma (Day & Newburger, 2002). Moreover, students are the financial lifeline of
colleges and universities through the tuition and fees as well as government subsidies for public

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institutions (Jamelske, 2008). Retention efforts are also important to see students through to
graduation as many schools benefit from the donations of their alumni. Recruiting efforts are also
a key component in institutional efforts for retention, as many of the school rakings take these
statistics into account.
One way retention can be achieved is through student involvement outside of the
classroom and access to university resources. Research has found that failing to become involved
in campus activities, organizations, and extracurricular activities, which promote involvement
and integration of college life, can lead to higher chances of attrition for some students (Styron &
Roberts, 2009). In their research on student success and retention, Fowler and Boylan (2010)
found that nonacademic and personal factors are as relevant to student success as are academic
factors. Additionally, meaningful learning experiences are an essential key to student retention,
and it is imperative for institutions of higher learning to create valuable and enriching learning
experiences within their academic programs (Styron & Roberts, 2009). These experiences can
have significant influence on students and their persistence towards graduation.
Persistence to Graduation
Students that are on track to graduate are seen as achievers and motivated, while students
who may be having a difficult time with classes and are at risk of not graduating, may be seen as
lazy and incapable. However, while resilience is frequently viewed as a function of an
individuals determination, environmental conditions can also influence development of
resiliency (Cabrera, Miner & Milem, 2011). It is the responsibility of the university to put in
place programs and policies that set students up for success. Of course students must also
contribute to their own success, but having the resources available can makes a big difference.
Overall, the evidence suggests that students involved in some type of organized first year

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intervention report higher levels of satisfaction and involvement in campus activities, achieve
higher grades and are more likely to be retained and graduate (Jamelske, 2008).
In summary, the first year is a crucial time for many college studentsone of transition,
social, and academic challenges. Research has illustrated that the timing of a significant
proportion of college student attrition occurs during the first year (as cited in Shepler & Woosley,
2011 ), with this as a priority, initiatives like the First Year Programs are crucial to help students
with these challenges and adjustment by introducing them to the school and their peers. As we
have learned, the most important interactions with peers seem to reinforce the academic learning
that takes place in the classrooms, and then the benefits of those interactions permeate into other
areas of college life (Pascarella & Terenzini, 2005).
3. Research Questions
Although there is a growing literature on the evaluation of First Year Programs, the
results are mixed. Jamelske (2008) suggest that this is because each analysis is specific to the
particular institution, student body and program under study. Understanding that First Year
Programs vary by institution, this research will look to broadly answer the following questions
through a mixed method study:
I.

Are students who participate in a First Year Program more likely to persist to their

II.

second year of college?

Are college graduation rates higher for students that participated in a First Year

III.

Program?
What specific program/s has the most affect on student retention?

My hypothesis is that students who participate in a First Year Program will have higher retention
and graduation rates than those students who do not.
4. Methods

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Research Method
I propose to do a mixed method study to address the effect of First Year Programs on
college student retention and persistence to graduation. I chose this method because it will help
me better understand the what and the why of my questions, which would be limiting if I
chose to just do either a quantitative or qualitative study. To answer research questions 1 &2 I
will use a non-experimental quantitative approach, and for research question 3 I will use a
qualitative method facilitating semi-structured interviews. These two methods combined will
allow me to use large sample to gather information as well as a diverse sample to interview.
Sample
This study will look at data from ten different colleges and universities offering a First
Year Program, and located throughout the United States. One large public and one medium sized
private institution from the Northeast, Southeast, South, Midwest, and West will make up the
sample for the quantitative research. To obtain the sample, I will use a stratified random
sampling method. All universities located within these specific regions will first be divided by
size and control (public vs. private), then by whether or not they offer the First Year Program. By
collecting data from across the United States and at different types of institutions, the results will
be more easily generalized to the larger population.
For my qualitative study I will use a criterion sampling method. The first criterion is to
determine if the student has taken part in a First Year Program. The second criterion is to
determine if the student has returned or is on track to return for their sophomore year at their
institution. To gather participants for my semi-structured interviews, I will post flyers on student
bulletin boards and residence halls, as most first year students are required to live on campus. I
will also distribute flyers to professors in first year classes. The flyer will include information on
the purpose of the study and the researchers contact information.
Data Collection

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Data will be collected from the universitys registrars office showing the number of first
year students enrolled in a First Year Program, and of those students, who returned or are on
track to return to that institution for their sophomore year and then finally graduate. Data will be
collected from the Fall of 2014 to the following Fall of 2015. In this way, we are able to see of
those students who enrolled as first year students in the Fall of 2014, how many returned for their
sophomore year in the Fall of 2015. Data will then be collected again in the Spring of 2018 to
determine of those students who returned to their sophomore year, how many persisted to
graduation. Data from the researchers interviews will be collected using a tape recorder and
transcribed.
5. Data Analytic Plan
The first proposed research question is: Are students who participate in a First Year
Program more likely to persist to their second year of college? Using a quantitative method
approach, data from the registrars office that shows the number of student enrolled in First Year
Program and their persistence to their sophomore year, as well as students who did not
participate in a First Year Program, a t-test will be used to determine if the difference between the
two groups is significant. If the analysis shows that students that participate in a First Year
Program are more likely to return for their second year of college, I can reject the null
hypothesis. I will be looking for a p value that is less than or equal to 0.05 to deem the results
significant.
The second research question is: Are college graduation rates higher for students that

participated in a First Year Program? Using a quantitative method approach, data collected from
the office of the registrar that shows the number of students graduating that participated in a First
Year Program as well as the number of student graduating that did not participate, a t-test will be
used to determine if the difference between the two groups is significant. If the analysis shows
that students who participated in a First Year Program have higher graduation rates than students

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that did not participate, I can reject the null hypothesis. I will be looking for a p value that is less
than or equal to 0.05 to deem the results significant.
The third and last question of the proposed research is: What specific program/s has the

most affect on student retention? Using a qualitative approach, semi-structured interviews will
be conducted to answer this question. The purpose of this question is to find out if specific
programs are contributing to higher return for a students sophomore year or persistence to
graduation. Using a scatter plot, where Y is the number of students and X is specific First Year
Programs, we will be able to see if participation in certain programs directly affects student
retention. If the analysis shows that student retention and persistence to graduation is directly
affected by a First Year Program, we can accept the research hypothesis.
6. Possible Limitations
In conducting this research, limitations can be seen in the ability to generalize the
findings to a larger population. While the sample size includes colleges and universities from all the
regions within the U.Swhich helps makes the results more generalizable First Year Programs

can vary greatly by institution. For this reason, factors contributing to retention and graduation
rates may be influenced depending on what institution you attend, making it difficult to find
general trends in the data.
Another limitation of this study is whether or not students are required to participate in a

First Year Program. Schools that make participation optional for students may have a larger
number of retention and persistence to graduation because students who voluntarily joined are
more likely to participate in class and be outgoing students. Conversely, institutions that require
participation in a First Year Program may have normal retention and graduation rates for that
institution, but for the purpose of our study, can negatively impact our data.

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References
Cabrera, N.L., Milem, J.F., & Miner, D.D. (2011). Can a summer bridge program impact firstyear persistence and performance?: A case study of the new start summer
program.

Research in Higher Education Journal, 54:481498.

Clark, M. M., & Cundiff, N. (2011). Assessing the effectiveness of a college freshman seminar
using propensity score adjustments. Research In Higher Education, 52(6), 616-639.
Day, J. C., & Newburger, E. C. (2002). The big payoff: Educational attainment and synthetic
estimates of work-life earnings. Washington, DC: U.S. Census Bureau
Retrieved from: http://www.census.gov/prod/2002pubs/p23-210.pdf
Fowler, P. R., & Boylan, H. R. (2010). Increasing student success and retention: A
multidimensional approach. Journal of Developmental Education, 34(2), 2-10.
Jamelske, E. (2009). Measuring the impact of a university first-year experience program on
student GPA and retention. Higher Education, 57(3), 373-391.
Marina, B., & McGuire, M. (2008). First-year-experience: Reform in college freshmen programs
for first year students. Educational Planning, 17(3), 19-27.
Pascarella, E. T., & Terenzini, RT. (2005). How College Affects Students, Volume 2, A Third.
Decade of Research. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

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Roberts, J., & Styron, J. (2010). Student satisfaction and persistence: Factors vital to student
retention. Research in Higher Education Journal, 61-18.
Woosley, S. A., & Shepler, D. K. (2011). Understanding the early integration experiences of
first-generation college students. College Student Journal, 45(4), 700-714.

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