A publication of University 101 Programs, University of South Carolina.

Designed by the University 101 staff and campus partners at the University of South Carolina, the 10th edition of this resource manual provides instructional faculty with a how-to guide for designing, managing, teaching, and evaluating student work in the first-year seminar. The manual includes a detailed discussion of course management that offers suggestions for working with first-year students, designing a syllabus, establishing grading policies, building community in the classroom, and working with a peer leader. Other chapters are keyed to the 10 learning outcomes for this course, drawing on a review of the research and practice literature and approaches that have worked well in the past. Resources for students, suggested assignments, and classroom activities are included throughout. The manual is updated each year based on assessment data, indicating the approaches that were most successful in achieving course outcomes, and can be adapted for use in a variety of campus contexts.

Published in partnership with the National Institute for the Study of Transfer Students.

Analysis of bachelor’s degree completion suggests that only about a third of college graduates attend a single institution from start to finish. More than one quarter earn college credits from three or more schools before completing a degree. For most, these student defined pathways lead to increased time-to-degree and higher costs. Many will simply drop out long before crossing the finish line. Ensuring college completion and success requires an understanding of the evolving nature of transfer transitions and a system-wide approach that reaches beyond two-year and four-year institutions to include high schools participating in dual enrollment programs and military college initiatives. A new edited collection offers insight into institutional and statewide partnerships that create clearly defined pathways to college graduation and career success for all students.

A publication of University 101 Programs, University of South Carolina.

Transitions is the customized textbook for students in the University of South Carolina's University 101 first-year seminar. It includes both general and institution-specific information for first-year students. Topics include time management, academic success strategies, career development, information literacy, health and wellness, and values and identity. An ideal model for institutions working to design a custom-published first-year seminar text.

With the passage of the Post-9/11 GI Bill in 2008, more than 1.4 million service members and their families became eligible for higher education benefits, and veterans from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan enrolled in colleges and universities in record numbers. The first wave of research about these new student veterans focused primarily on describing their characteristics and the transition from military service to civilian life and the college campus. This new edited collection presents findings from the second wave of research about student veterans, with a focus on data-driven evidence of academic success factors, including persistence, retention, degree completion, and employment after college. An invaluable resource for educators poised to enter the next phase of supporting military-connected college students.

Senior capstone experiences, one of a number of high-impact educational practices promoted by the Association of American Colleges and Universities, provide students with an opportunity to integrate and apply what they have learned throughout their undergraduate years. Participating in capstone experiences have been linked to engagement in deep learning and gains in personal and social development, practical competence, and general education. The 2016 National Survey of Senior Capstone Experiences is an institution-level study designed to gather a national profile of campus efforts to promote student success in the senior year. This research report presents findings related to institutional priorities for the senior year, the types of capstone experiences offered, and the organization and administration of select capstone experiences.

Published in partnership with NODA, the Association for Orientation, Transition, and Retention in Higher Education

Family members of new college students are often unsure what to expect and how to best help their students succeed in higher education. Focusing on the unique needs of commuter students, this brief guide describes typical challenges in adjusting to college, support services and opportunities offered by colleges and universities, and strategies family members can use to encourage student learning and success. A glossary of college terms is included.

$2.25 each when purchased in a set of 100 copies.

Published in partnership with NACADA: The Global Community for Academic Advising

Academic advisors help students learn to make the most of their college years, not merely by completing requirements toward a degree but also by growing intellectually and developing all aspects of their identity. Yet, many professional and faculty advisors are new to academic advising and may feel ill-equipped to do more than help students register for classes. This new edited collection provides an overview of the theory and best practice undergirding advising today while exploring the transition challenges of a wide-range of first-year college students, including those attending two-year colleges, coming from underrepresented backgrounds, entering underprepared for college-level work, and/or experiencing academic failure.

First-year seminars have been widely hailed as a high-impact educational practice, leading to improved academic performance, increased retention, and achievement of critical 21st Century learning outcomes. While the first-year seminar tends to be narrowly defined in the literature, national explorations of course structure and administration underscore the diversity of these curricular initiatives across and within individual campuses. What then are the common denominators among these highly variable courses that contribute to their educational effectiveness?

This collection of case studies--representing a wide variety of institutional and seminar types--addresses this question. Using Kuh and O’Donnell’s eight conditions of effective educational initiatives as a framework, authors describe the structure, pedagogy, and assessment strategies that lead to high-quality seminars. Introductory and concluding essays examine the structural conditions that are likely to support educational effectiveness in the seminar and describe the most commonly reported conditions across all cases. What Makes the First-Year Seminar High Impact? offers abundant models for ensuring the delivery of a high-quality educational experience to entering students.