A Profile of Latina/o and African American Students in their First Year of College: Implications for Persistence

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A Profile of Latina/o and African American
Students in their First Year of College
Implications for Persistence Success

• Victor Sáenz, Ph.D.
• (Co-author Leticia Oseguera, Ph.D.)
• Tuesday, October 10th, 2006
• National Symposium on Student Retention
• Albuquerque, NM

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Presentation Goals

• Overview of HERI History of CIRP Freshman Survey
• Introduce the YFCY survey as a longitudinal
  follow-up to the CIRP Freshman Survey
• Review results of study using Freshman Survey and
  YFCY survey data
• Discuss how institutions can utilize HERI
  longitudinal data to assess retention outcomes

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Higher Education Research Institute
CIRP Cooperative Institutional Research Program
Funded Research
Freshman Survey
College Senior Survey
YFCY

• Atlantic Philanthropies
• Templeton
• National Institutes of Health

Faculty Survey
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CIRP Freshman Survey

• Largest and longest-running national study of
  American college students
• Initiated in 1966 at the American Council on
  Education Housed at HERI (UCLA) since 1973
• Administered annually to over 400,000 incoming
  freshmen at more than 600-700 colleges and
  universities nationwide
• Since 1966 12 million students 1,800
  institutions

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CIRP Freshman Survey Items

• Demographic Characteristics
• Expectations for College
• High School Experiences
• Degree Aspirations Career Plans
• College Finances
• Attitudes, Values, Life Goals
• Reasons for Attending College
• FRESHMAN TRENDS (1966 present)

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CIRP Freshman Trends
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CIRP Freshman Trends
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Your First College Year (YFCY) Survey

• Developed in 2000 in conjunction with the Policy
  Center on the First Year of College
• Designed as a follow-up to the CIRP Freshman
  Survey may also be used as a stand-alone
  instrument
• Over 1/3 of the YFCY survey items directly
  post-test items on the CIRP Freshman Survey
• In 2005, surveyed over 40,000 students at 200
  institutions nationwide

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YFCY Major Themes

• Academic and social adjustment
• Sources of satisfaction and dissatisfaction
• Academic, residential, and employment experiences
• Plans for the next academic year
• Patterns of behavior
• Life goals
• Self-concept and feelings of personal success

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YFCY the I-E-O Model
Environments YFCY
Inputs CIRP Freshman Survey
Outcomes YFCY
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YFCY the I-E-O Model
Environments YFCY (e.g., place of residence
during the first year, interactions with peers
and faculty, curricular and co-curricular
experiences)
Inputs CIRP Freshman Survey (e.g., academic
performance in high school, financial
concerns prior to college entry, expectations
for college, degree aspirations, self-concept in
high school)
Outcomes YFCY (e.g., satisfaction with college,
social/emotional adjustment, sense of belonging)
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Higher Education Pipeline Points for Policy and
Institutional Intervention

• High School Drop-outs
• College Enrollment Transfer (2-yr 4-yr
  schools)
• First Year of College (transition to 4-yr
  schools)
• Persistence Graduation Rates
• Graduate School Enrollment

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Higher Education Pipeline Why focus on
Latinas/os African Americans?

• High School Drop-outs
• In 2000 Census, 21 of Hispanic 16- to
  19-year-olds were high school dropouts (8 of
  White youth 12 of African American youth).
• College Enrollment Transfer (2-yr 4-yr
  schools)
• In 2000, Latinas/os represented 9.5 and African
  Americans 11.3 of all students in higher
  education, with over 50 of these students at
  2-yr institutions.
• First Year of College (transition to 4-yr
  schools)
• ? ? ?

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The Challenge

• While Latina/o and African American enrollment
  has steadily increased in last decade, they
  remain disproportionately underrepresented at
  four-year institutions.
• Further, these student groups continue to lag
  behind other groups in baccalaureate degree
  completion and educational attainment.
• Addressing this gap in educational attainment is
  a critical policy priority of many policymakers
  and researchers.
• Need to focus efforts on the retention and
  graduation rates for Latinas/os and African
  Americans already enrolled in college
• (e.g., during the first year of college).

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The First Year of College

• Is about transitioning
• Affects college satisfaction, self-confidence,
  adjustment
• Is about establishing a positive relationship
  with the institution
• Influences degree and career objectives
• Has critical implications for Persistence
  Success

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The First Year of CollegeLatinas/os African
Americans

• Existing research on the first year of college
  has not adequately disaggregated student
  experiences by race or ethnicity.
• Students of color at predominantly white
  institutions can experience feelings of
  isolation, difficulty in transitioning, etc.
• It is important to study these experiences as
  they may have serious implications for these
  students ability to persist and succeed in
  college.

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First Year of CollegePurpose of Study

• Using a national, longitudinal sample
• Profile the pre-college and first-year
  characteristics of Latina/o and African American
  students
• Investigate key experiences across demographic,
  college preparatory, academic, environmental, and
  emotive domains that might differ for Latina/o
  and African American students.
• Second Phase (not detailed today)
• Satisfaction with college
• Social/Academic self-confidence
• Social/emotional adjustment

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First Year of CollegeData Sample

• Funded by the Office of Latino Policy
  Initiatives, University of California Office of
  the President
• Data
• 2000/2001 (CIRP) Freshmen Survey
• 2001/2002 (YFCY) First College Year Survey
• Longitudinal in nature can track students over
  time
• Sample
• Over 140 public and private institutions
  nationally
• Students
• Latinas/os (n891)
• African Americans (n755)
• White/Caucasians (n1,646) (stratified random
  sample)
• TOTAL N3,292

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First Year of CollegeAnalyses

• Descriptive analyses
• Analyses were conducted to explore pre-college
  and first year experiences for Latinas/os and
  African Americans data for White/Caucasians were
  used as a comparison group.
• Second Phase (not detailed today)
• Higher-order statistical analyses
• Shed light on more complex relationships among
  variables of interest, and
• Help to pinpoint the unique experiences that
  matter for these students in their first year of
  college.

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First Year of CollegeVariables of Interest
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First Year of CollegeProfile Parental Education
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First Year of CollegeProfile Financing College

• Financial considerations loom large

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First Year of CollegeProfile Work Status

• Work is a critical area for concern during the
  first year

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First Year of CollegeProfile Time away from
Campus
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First Year of CollegeProfile Key Findings

• Latinas/os were less likely to live on campus and
  to choose a college that is near their home than
  non-Latinos.
• Non-Latinos far outpaced their Latina/o
  counterparts in reported family income.
• Parental education levels for Latinas/os were
  significantly lower than for their non-Latino
  peers.

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First Year of CollegeProfile Key Findings
(cont.)

• Latina/o and African American respondents were
  more likely to list that an offer of financial
  aid was important or very important in
  helping them choose a college.
• Latinas/os and African Americans reported higher
  financial concerns than their peers.
• Latinas/os and African Americans tended to be
  employed at greater rates and worked for longer
  periods of time, while enrolled full-time in
  college during their first year.

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First Year of CollegeProfile Summary

• Latinas/os and African Americans are more likely
  than their peers to spend added time in
  activities that are at odds with college success
  during the critical first year, including
• spending more time working,
• commuting to campus, and
• living off campus.

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First Year of CollegeProfile Academic
Engagement
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First Year of CollegeProfile Academic
Engagement
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First Year of CollegeAcademic Experiences
Findings

• No major differences were found in students
  social and intellectual activities and behaviors
  during their first college year.
• Latina/o and African American students reported
  equally high levels of academic engagement in
  their first college year as evidenced by
• amount of time spent studying,
• developing effective study skills,
• managing their time effectively, and
• adjusting to the academic demands of college.

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First Year of CollegeAcademic Experiences
Conclusions

• Pre-college background differences may well
  manifest themselves in ways that create greater
  challenges or stressors for Latina/o and African
  American students in competing academically
  during their first year of college.
• For some Latina/o students, the unique
  combination of socio-economic and family
  pressures that are evidenced by the need to live
  at or closer to home and to work for pay, for
  example, may negatively affect emotional
  well-being, which in turn may depress academic
  success.
• The nonacademic stressors associated with going
  to college can negatively affect Latina/o and
  African American students chances for
  persistence and success.

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First Year of CollegeThings to think about

• Our Findings should encourage educators to think
  more deeply about how for Latinas/os and African
  Americans, academic success might be linked to
  unique nonacademic challenges associated with
  pre-college characteristics that contribute to
  additional pressures.

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Contact HERI

• Victor Saenz, PhD
• CIRP Research Manager
• Email vsaenz_at_ucla.edu
• Website www.gseis.ucla.edu/heri