It Matters Long Before: How Early Exposure to Faculty and Advisors at Baccalaureate Institutions Relates to Upward Transfer

A missing component in the current transfer literature is how community college students’ exposure to faculty and/or advisors at baccalaureate institutions early in their educational journey, such as meeting with transfer advisors or faculty members from a baccalaureate college or university, may shape their longer-term transfer outcomes. Our research addresses this gap, drawing upon longitudinal survey data and propensity score matching. The findings reveal a positive relationship between early exposure and transfer, suggesting that when students gain exposure to and potentially receive support from faculty and advisors at baccalaureate institutions, they may be better prepared for the upward transfer process. Our study highlights the role played by the transfer-receiving end in assisting community college students to fulfill their transfer aspirations. The larger transfer research agenda must continue to delve into the specific ways in which baccalaureate institutions can play a substantive role in preparing and supporting students both prior to and after transfer.

American Colleges and Universities

This chapter explores the differences among different types of colleges and universities, including large and small, public and private, and different missions (e.g., research versus doctoral versus baccalaureate institutions). Also discussed are the different market segments that academic institutions target.

Keys to a Successful Job Talk

Interviews for faculty positions in psychology often include a teaching demonstration or research talk, but there is little empirical data about what makes these job talks successful. Psychology faculty ( N = 303) described the job talks required at 4-year institutions and the attributes of a successful job talk. For both teaching demonstrations and research talks, being accurate and knowledgeable was of highest importance, but being practiced, open, and engaging were also important. However, significant differences between institutions showed that baccalaureate institutions emphasize teaching skills during job talks and doctoral institutions emphasize research skills. The results confirm that a polished job talk is crucial, but they also illustrate that successful job talks must fit the teaching and research mission of the institution.

The ACRL Conferences: A Profile of its Presenters

This study provides a profile of the authors of contributed papers at the first twelve ACRL conferences. It found that the conference presenters tend to be female academic librarians (administrators, reference librarians, and subject specialists) from Doctoral Research institutions in the Midwest. It also discovered several trends. During its 27-year history, there have been increases in the number of female authors, library school faculty giving papers, and authors from master’s and baccalaureate institutions. In addition, the rate of collaboration has grown. The profile and its related trends were very similar to what has been reported in C&RL authorship studies—with one exception. Women are more likely to appear as conference presenters than journal authors. Further research should explore the role of gender in scholarly communication.