What participating students say about the college bound program at Boston College

Generoso, James John, Jr Boston College 2011 해외박사(DDOD)

소속기관이 구독 중이 아닌 경우 오후 4시부터 익일 오전 9시까지 원문보기가 가능합니다.

The focus of this dissertation is the student voice in College Bound (CB), a precollege preparation program at Boston College. College Bound has existed on the Boston College campus for more than twenty years as an academic enrichment and supportive program that benefits urban students from two Boston Public high schools. The two essential questions of the research are "What do students say they learn at CB?" and "What suggestions do students have to improve the CB Program?" Literature about the importance of the student voice in the educational enterprise is reviewed as a means of giving context to the study. Primary data included student surveys (n=29), interviews (n=12), and focus groups (n=3). Other sources utilized included field notes and observations of the researcher as participant-observer, in addition to official College Bound documents. The constant comparative method was used to analyze data from the primary data sources. Data was also analyzed by data type and findings were presented thematically. Major findings included: CB students know a lot of what is going on and do not attend CB as empty vessels, but bring their own knowledge and experience to the CB Program. Students say they learn academic self-discipline, a more focused search for potential colleges to attend, and value their experience attending the CB program on the Boston College campus. Suggestions for improving the CB Program include: creating a regular schedule, re-establishing a community meeting experience, ensuring a consistent connection with their Boston College mentors, and providing more field trips to other colleges and museums. Participating student voices should be encouraged and respected as an important source of information in educational programs that exist to benefit those very students.

The perceived relationship between men's intercollegiate athletics and general alumni giving at Boston college from 1996--2005

Sammartino, Hallie G Boston College 2010 해외박사(DDOD)

소속기관이 구독 중이 아닌 경우 오후 4시부터 익일 오전 9시까지 원문보기가 가능합니다.

This qualitative case study examines the importance of men's intercollegiate athletics for alumni giving at Boston College for a 10-year period, based on the perceptions of 21 Boston College administrators and alumni. This study explores how athletics at Boston College engages alumni in ways that may eventually lead to their financial support of the institution. The findings reveal that study participants perceive football and men's basketball as a major source of engagement for the University's alumni that outrank other alumni activities in terms of reconnecting graduates with the institution. Further, participants support the existence of a relationship between men's intercollegiate athletics and general alumni giving at Boston College, although at varying levels of impact. The findings from this study suggest that engagement with athletic activities and events may serve as the conduit to general alumni giving that supports a host of programs and initiatives that aid the institution in its position as a national research university. Major findings focus on five areas regarding the relationship between men's intercollegiate athletics and general alumni giving at Boston College: the importance of general alumni giving, why alumni give, the importance of men's intercollegiate athletics, what engages alumni, and the influence of men's intercollegiate athletics on general alumni giving.

Hispanic college students' adjustment: The influence of familism, acculturation and social support

Jean-Van Hell, Regina Boston College 2000 해외박사(DDOD)

소속기관이 구독 중이 아닌 경우 오후 4시부터 익일 오전 9시까지 원문보기가 가능합니다.

Hispanic college students' value of familism, acculturation, and social support were examined in relation to these students' adjustment to college. Ninety-one Hispanic college students completed a questionnaire that included demographics, two scales of familism (Valenzuela & Dornbusch questionnaire) and the Bardis Familism Scale (BFS), the Bidimensional Acculturation Scale (BAS), the Social Provisions Scale (SPS), and the College Adjustment Scale (CAS). The questionnaires were coded and the data were entered in SPSS. The analyses of the data revealed that familism attitudes of Hispanic college students were not related to their college adjustment, which was contrary to the expectations of previous research. Acculturation to the Anglo culture was found to be related to college adjustment. Levels of familism were not related to acculturation to the Anglo culture or to the Hispanic culture. Consequently, it was not demonstrated whether familism remains constant or changes as individuals become more acculturated to the Anglo culture. The majority of the sample were acculturated to the Anglo culture (94.4 percent); only 76.7 percent were acculturated to the Hispanic culture. The sample contained 63 participants who were bicultural and 27 participants who were not bicultural. Thus, these findings show that acculturation is resolved multidimensionally and is the result of the individual's context, personality, and abilities, as has been previously discussed. This study found that familism in Hispanic college students is not related to social support, as it was expected since the value of familism implies social support. Thus, questions are raised regarding familism and social support among different generations because familism incorporates respect for elders and obedience to parents. Relationships among familism, income, and education were investigated. The findings revealed slight relationships between familism, income and education. Income and father's and mother's education were moderately correlated; father's and mother's education were also moderately correlated. Gender differences in familism were not found. The homogeneity and the size of the sample may have influenced the results of this study. Recommendations are given to clarify the questions raised by these findings.

Stepping off the conveyor belt: Gap year effects on the first-year college experience

Tenser, Lori I Boston College 2015 해외박사(DDOD)

소속기관이 구독 중이 아닌 경우 오후 4시부터 익일 오전 9시까지 원문보기가 가능합니다.

Taking a gap year between high school and college has become more common in the United States in recent years, yet little research attempts to describe or analyze the experience of the students who arrive on college campuses after such a year out. This qualitative study followed 12 first-year students attending highly-selective private institutions in the northeastern U.S. as they experienced the transitions from high school to gap year to college. With varying levels of family support and high levels of personal motivation, the students participated in a wide range of gap-year endeavors. The findings indicate that students were heavily influenced by their encounters during the gap year, leading to strong evidence of self-authorship among the participants, which in turn shaped the way students pursued their goals when they arrived at college. Particularly influential were encounters that involved independent problem-solving, participating in multigenerational relationships, and immersion in new cultural settings. The students' transitions to college during the first year were marked by patterns of Sovereign Engagement with regard to learning, relationships, and decision-making. Commonly marked by internalized goals, authenticity in relationships, and greater individual agency, "Sovereign Engagement" captures the self-authored perspective that these students brought to their college experience. Contrary to suggestions in the popular media, not all gap-year students found the transition to be seamless; nor were they uniformly motivated to earn good grades. As a summary of the findings, the Gap Year Impact Model provides an important frame of reference for understanding the experiences, needs, and sovereign decision-making patterns of gap-year students. The results offer students, parents, colleges and universities an introduction to the lived experiences of gap-year students, who are arriving on campus in increasing numbers each year.

Indebted to their future: Student loans and widening inequities for borrowers across socioeconomic classes

Lu, Elissa Chin Boston College 2013 해외박사(DDOD)

소속기관이 구독 중이 아닌 경우 오후 4시부터 익일 오전 9시까지 원문보기가 가능합니다.

As students increasingly incur high amounts of debt for their undergraduate education, there is heightened concern about the long-term implications of loans on borrowers, especially borrowers from low socioeconomic backgrounds. Drawing upon the concepts of cultural capital and habitus (Bourdieu & Passeron, 1977) and the human capital framework (Becker, 1993), this research explores how student debt and social class intersect and affect individuals' trajectory into adulthood. A total of 50 interviews were conducted with young adults who had incurred $30,000 to $180,000 in undergraduate debt and who were from varying social classes. The findings explore how four categories of students – Insiders, Entrepreneurs, Pioneers, and New Moneys– varied along dimensions of economic and cultural wealth, and experienced their college search, college education, and transition to the workforce differently. The findings point to the immense role that habitus (Bourdieu, 1986) plays in shaping borrowers' educational experiences and post-graduation outcomes: Individuals' embodied cultural capital shaped their educational experiences and interactions with institutions and the labor market. Those who had high levels of cultural resources tended to have a more rigorous college search, stronger academic orientation, and greater student involvement during college. Compared to other students, they were more likely to transition to high-paying, high-status professional positions after graduation and attend graduate school. In contrast, individuals with low cultural resources tended to have a more casual college search, were more prone to encountering errors with their financial aid, spent a great deal of time working during college, and later faced underemployment in the labor market. They were less likely to report benefiting from a social network and their credential in the labor market and more likely to express regret about their debt and college education. The findings illustrate the inequitable payoff that college and debt have for borrowers with varying levels of cultural resources, and suggest that loans can serve as a form of social reproduction. A conceptual model outlines the factors associated with incurring high levels of debt and illustrates how they relate to borrowers' college experiences and lives post-graduation. In highlighting how debt exacerbates social inequities and the risks it can pose to students, especially students with low income and cultural resources, the findings call for higher education institutions to conduct a comprehensive review of their practices and services from the time students apply to college to after they graduate. Enhanced supports at high schools and community organizations can also assist families, particularly in encouraging participation in early savings plans and strengthening their financial literacy. Additionally, increased governmental scrutiny of borrowing can help protect students from over-indebtedness.

The effects of spirituality on the adjustment to college of African American students who attend a predominantly White institution

Phillips, Ferna Lenise Silva Boston College 2000 해외박사(DDOD)

소속기관이 구독 중이 아닌 경우 오후 4시부터 익일 오전 9시까지 원문보기가 가능합니다.

This study investigated the effects of spirituality and religious affiliation on the adjustment to college of African American students attending a predominantly White university. The effects, of gender were also studied. Participants were 115 undergraduate students, 53 males and 62 females. Each participant completed a demographic questionnaire, the Index of Core Spiritual Experiences (INSPIRIT), and the Student Adaptation to College Questionnaire (SACQ). Little research has been done that examines the effects of spirituality and its impact on African American student development. This study presents trends and contributions of spirituality and religious practices on the adjustment to college of African American students. Results indicated that spirituality has some effect on the level of college adjustment. The frequency of spiritual practices affects college adjustment and some religious affiliation helps in the overall adjustment to college. Gender differences were found with respect to the overall adjustment to college environment and academic adjustment. For both the African American male and female samples, higher levels of adjustment contributed to better academic success. There was little interactive effect relative to gender; however, females tended to have more involvement and attachment to institutional activities and programs than males. The findings of this study as they relate to the experimental hypotheses and research questions are presented. The limitations of the investigation, suggestions for future research, and implication of the results are discussed.

Country roads take me...?: An ethnographic case study of college pathways among rural, first-generation students

Beasley, Sarah Elizabeth Boston College 2011 해외박사(DDOD)

소속기관이 구독 중이 아닌 경우 오후 4시부터 익일 오전 9시까지 원문보기가 가능합니다.

The purpose of this study was to examine college pathways or college access and success of rural, first-generation students. Most research on college pathways for low- and moderate-income students focuses on those students as a whole or on urban low-socioeconomic status (SES) students. (Caution is in order when generalizing the experiences of low-SES urban students to those of low-SES rural students.) The literature reveals that rural students attend college at lower rates than their urban and suburban counterparts and are likely to have lower college aspirations. Why such differences exist remains highly speculative in the literature. Especially absent is knowledge about how rural culture interacts with rural student behavior. Current research on pathways primarily examines factors used to predict college aspirations, participation, and completion of rural students. This ethnographic case study examined why and how such factors influenced students in a rural, high poverty county in southern West Virginia. The study explored rural cultural values and how rural culture influenced college pathways. All students in the sample had attended high school in the selected county and were enrolled in West Virginia two- and four-year public institutions. This study found that attachment to family significantly influenced students' college-going decisions and behaviors. Students' parents, siblings, and extended family provided support and encouragement necessary for high educational aspirations, college-going, and persistence. Attachment to family made it difficult for students to leave the area. The decision to leave, return or stay was difficult for rural students given the strong attachment to family, place, and community; yet, the lack of economic opportunity in the area affected the decision as well. Cultural legacies, traditions, and norms influenced rural students' college-going and persistence. In addition to family's vital role in the success of rural students their high schools, communities, and peers were also relevant. Given the importance of family in the lives of rural students, local, institutional, state, and federal policies and practices must keep families involved and replicate family support models.

College Stop-Out Among Rural Undergraduates: A Phenomenology

Jacobsen, Christopher D ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Boston College 2021 해외박사(DDOD)

소속기관이 구독 중이 아닌 경우 오후 4시부터 익일 오전 9시까지 원문보기가 가능합니다.

Rural undergraduates lag behind urban and suburban undergraduates across many measures of college success, even though they graduate from high school at a higher rate. While a small but growing body of research literature addresses the challenges and barriers rural students face during the college process, few, if any, studies have focused specifically on the experience of rural undergraduates who withdraw from college before completing a degree.This qualitative phenomenological study examines the experiences of rural, low-income, first-in-family undergraduates who stop out of college. Study participants (n=13) attended high school in different rural communities and geographic regions across the United States. After participating in an Upward Bound program during high school, they each enrolled in a two- or four-year, undergraduate degree program at an accredited, non-profit college or university and then withdrew prior to completing a degree. Following in the tradition of Edmund Husserl (1859-1938) and using the framework provided by Clark Moustakas (1994), I engaged study participants in open ended, semi-structured interviews. After those conversations, participants submitted independently recorded voice memos about their experience stopping out of college.The rural backgrounds of study participants manifested in many aspects of how and what they experienced when they withdrew from college. The phenomenon was described as an intense and devastating period of time, characterized by feelings of failure, shame, confusion, and disappointment. The distinct influence of rural families, communities, and schools shaped participants’ decisions before, during, and after their time at college. While the reasons students withdrew varied widely and may be similar to those of non-rural students, all participants perceived their rural background as deeply implicated in the stop-out experience.This study offers a new orientation on the topic of college stop-out among rural undergraduates and presents a working persistence model for this underserved student group. The three theoretical perspectives presented in this study – transcendental phenomenology, ecological systems theory, and community cultural wealth – expose broader meaning about both the objective and subjective qualities of the stop-out experience, adding a depth to findings that has broad implications for scholars and practitioners. This study concludes with practical insights for educators, policymakers, and institutions that serve rural undergraduates.

The role of financial information in college decision making: Implications for federal higher education policy

Margetta Morgan, Julie Boston College 2010 해외박사(DDOD)

소속기관이 구독 중이 아닌 경우 오후 4시부터 익일 오전 9시까지 원문보기가 가능합니다.

As families struggle with the rising cost of college, the federal government attempts to ease the financial burden not only by providing grants and loans, but also by giving families better information about the cost of college and the availability of financial aid. The federal government spends significant amounts of money on collecting and disseminating information with the hope that students and parents will make better decisions about how to save, where to apply, and where to attend. This research stems from the observation that efforts to provide information are not backed by sufficient research. The literature on college choice and use of information does not indicate whether (and when) families seek cost and financial aid information. Moreover, the literature does not suggest whether families' use of information has the intended effect upon their decision making by helping families make better decisions about paying for college. This study takes steps to fill this gap in the literature by examining seven middle-income families' use of information during the college decision making process. The research uses a phenomenological approach to look at both the sources of information families use and the meaning that they make of this in their college search processes. The results show that families rely on cost and financial aid information primarily from colleges, independent websites, and informal sources like other parents, friends or neighbors. The study also identifies themes that play a role in shaping families' ability to use information in their decision making, such as the uncertainty that characterizes the college choice process and the distinct roles played by the parents and students.

College choice and documented Chinese immigrant community college students in Massachusetts

Luie, Siu Ming Boston College 2010 해외박사(DDOD)

소속기관이 구독 중이 아닌 경우 오후 4시부터 익일 오전 9시까지 원문보기가 가능합니다.

College-choice studies have long been conducted to help colleges improve their recruitment strategies (Chapman, 1981; Hossler & Gallagher, 1987; Jackson, 1982; Litten, 1982). The dominant college-choice models and studies have, however, focused solely on traditional aged students seeking to enroll in four-year colleges/universities upon high school completion (Bers & Smith, 1987; Cabrera & La Nasa, 2000). Neglected from these established models has been the other student populations enrolled in other sectors of higher education in the U.S., specifically the community colleges. Critical Race Theory (CRT) provided the conceptual framework for this qualitative study that explored the college-choice phenomenon for a group of documented Chinese immigrant students at one urban public community college. This study examined the participants' experiences to determine factors that contributed to their college-choice decision making. The stories shared by a sample of 16 participants (ages 19 to 39) revealed four overarching factors that impacted their college-choice decision making: (1) their experiences as immigrants in the U.S.; (2) their experiences as members of the working class in the U.S.; (3) their educational experiences prior to their immigration to the U.S.; (4) their educational experiences while in the U.S., which raised concerns about equity in access to college knowledge. Participants negotiated all these factors to decide that they would enroll at a community college. The findings from this study contributed to the literature of college-choice from the perspective.