Connecting with others: Dispositional and situational relatedness during the college transition

The college transition involves social challenges for students, including concerns about distance from family and hometown friends, and pressure to build a new social network on campus. Students who are successfully navigating these social challenges should be better adjusted on campus and feel more satisfied with the direction of their lives. We measured two expressions of relatedness in incoming, central US students’ ( N = 244; M age = 18.1 years; 78.6% women) autobiographical recollections of the college transition: (a) dispositional relatedness (DR) and tendencies to emphasize motivations for connecting with others; and (b) situational relatedness (SR) and reflections on successes and challenges within specific relationship domains. We hypothesized that both expressions of relatedness would be positively and distinctly associated with longitudinal reports of college adjustment (i.e., belonging) and subjective well-being (i.e., life satisfaction). We also hypothesized that changes in college adjustment would mediate associations between expressions of relatedness and well-being. Findings broadly supported expectations. Each expression of relatedness robustly predicted better student outcomes longitudinally. Further, improvements in college belonging and decreases in homesickness mediated the ties between situational relatedness and subjective well-being. We discuss the implications of these findings for the college transition and student support services.

A Gap Analysis of the Quality of Student Support Services in an Open Distance Learning Institution

This paper focuses on an investigation of the quality of student support services. The latter are important aspects in the development of a whole-person experience in any educational system. In the open distance learning (ODL) mode of education, student support services are even more important as they are the anchors of student success. Based on this, the main purpose of this paper is to observe the possible gaps between students’ expectations (the ideal standard) and their experiences (the perceptions formed) of student support services as provided by the University of South Africa (UNISA). The respondents of this paper were doctoral students of UNISA who live and work in Ethiopia. A multi-dimensional and “standardised” instrument was used as a tool to collect quantitative data. The theoretical framework adopted in analysing the results was the gaps model. Descriptive statistics (means and standard deviations) and dependent t-tests were the statistical tools employed. The findings show that there were gaps between the students’ expectations and experiences along the four dimensions of the instrument, namely Supervision Support, Infrastructure, Administrative Support and Academic Facilitation. It was therefore recommended that UNISA should focus on improving the relevant services it gives to its international students.

“We Eat Sushi Now”: Targeting Hungry Students at South African Universities

Media reports, research, and student support services are paying an increasing amount of attention to the hunger experienced by students at South African universities. This article demonstrates that most of this attention is rooted in a food security paradigm, or in approaches that mitigate the effects of student hunger. It avoids addressing the causes of hunger, which lie in oppressive systems such as the neoliberal world food system and the operation of the entrepreneurial public university. Our discussion of trends at the University of the Western Cape (UWC) takes two trajectories: We explore the ways in which universities’ practical and research priorities reinforce hegemonic responses to hunger, and we reflect on explicitly politicised currents of critical work around students and hunger. What certain scholars and activists have termed “critical food system literacy” signals how transformative strategies and knowledge production are being developed at some universities—sometimes beyond the parameters of what is conventionally seen as food-centred advocacy, activism, or research.

Quality of Academic Advising and Student Support Services from the Perspective of Preparatory Year Students at the University of Najran

This research aimed to measure the level of quality of academic advising and student support services from the perspective of students of Preparatory Year at the University of Najran. To achieve this, the descriptive analytical method was followed by administering a questionnaire consisting of (37 items) which were distributed over four dimensions (the academic advisor – the quality of the academic support for outstanding and struggling students – the quality of supporting talented and creative students – the quality of complaints and suggestions services). The sample consisted of (300) students selected from among the preparatory year at the University of Najran. The results indicated that the level of quality of academic advising services and student support services was (medium level) with a mean of (2.24). There were statistically significant differences at (α = 0.05) in the level of quality of academic services and student support services according to the level (first-second) in favor of the second level. There were also differences in the level of academic advising and student support services according to student status at (α = 0.05) in favor of struggling students. Results also indicated that there were no statistically significant differences in the students' assessment of the quality of services due to the gender variable. The study concluded that academic advising services need more efforts to improve the quality of services, especially in providing the necessary support to students, as well as the services for gifted and creative students, complaints and suggestions services. The study recommended the need to adopt clear mechanisms for academic advising and student support through which these services can be provided to all student categories and to evaluate the quality of these services. Keywords: academic advising, preparatory year, quality, Najran University.

Assessment for Student Success: Delivering High-Quality Modules and Improving Educational Methods in Civil Engineering Program

There are many internal and external factors influence student success such as optimization of student support services, campus resources, teaching methods and learning outcomes achievement, and many others. Understanding student success due to the global declining quality of undergraduate engineering students is very demanding. Post training or re-educating graduates is expensive and time consuming and can be prevented by if structured educational process took a place. The aims of this study were to identify student’s success related factors and assess how a new teaching method will impact student success. Assessment of student success within civil engineering major was analyzed. After conducting the teaching method, a structured reflective questionnaire was carried out among 50 students targeting two modules namely traffic and transportation engineering from level three, and introduction to structural analysis and design from level two. Students’ satisfaction and teaching method effectiveness emerged as significant indictors of student success. Statistical analysis was performed to evaluate student responses. Person correlation and Multiple Linear Regression were used to test and predict the relationships between the variables mainly gender, teaching method effectiveness, and overall evaluation. Gender plays a moderate to strong role in the response for method effectiveness indicator and overall evaluation indicators. The performance of Multiple Linear Regression was exceptionally well with very low average relative error (5%). Students are more likely to be engaged onsite rather than online to adjust their need and trigger academic support. Improving student support services, student’s engagement, and update module materials to be more problem based are recommended to ensure students success. In addition, proper student’s feedback analysis, formative and summative assessments were primary tools to improve teaching practices. Received: 26 November 2020 / Accepted: 27 January 2021 / Published: 5 March 2021

Remote Student Support During COVID-19: Perspectives of Chief Online Officers in Higher Education

In order to understand the nature of online student support services during the COVID-19 pandemic, 31 chief online officers representing a range of colleges and universities were interviewed in late Spring 2020. Findings highlighted issues of access and equity in online student support services, the rapid expansion of student services due to the pandemic, and how strength in online programming enabled a more seamless pivot to emergency remote operations. This study adds texture to the literature on the gaps between support services offered to face-to-face versus online students, and also provides a foundation for important questions regarding the future of online student support after COVID-19. The study also begins a dialog into the long-term ramifications of siloing online organizational units at institutions of higher education.