Hello, this is a modified and added task based on the original.
Need to add 1500+ words, in the added text, need to use course readings.
1. This is the instruction for the final delivery:
Students will synthesize readings and theories from the course and apply them to their investigation of an intervention/collaborative group in the form of a policy memorandum addressed to the director/head of the group and/or the individual interviewed. The memo should be 13- 15 pages in length, double-spaced, 1” margins, Times New Roman. Papers will be graded on accuracy and clarity of information presented, synthesis of readings and theories related to the intervention/group and with regard to potential challenges and outcomes, thoroughness of investigation about the intervention/group, relevant suggestions and actions needed to avoid challenges and to ensure desired outcomes (including, but not limited to: target participants, measurement of outcomes, collaboration strategies, participation in collective impact efforts, professional development opportunities for staff and other adults, etc), and incorporation of feedback from midterm.
2.
In the process of adding, it needs to be modified according to the original feedback. They are all very small parts.
This is what the feedback looks like, and you can see it when you open it on the right.
3.
I provide course readings, course syllabus, because we need to use course theories and readings.
4.
A sample paper is provided for reference. (Just in the back of this file)
Thanks.
PS.
The part I wrote is midterm paper, and what needs your help is final paper (final paper is an improvement of midterm paper). The specific information can be completed by referring to the content provided in syllabus.
You can follow several sections like this, Challenges to successfully serving students, significance of programs in the P-20 Pipeline
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My essay which needed to add words on is called “WorkFirst as a State-First Program: Agency Thinking as a Barrier to Outreach “
Sample paper:
To: XXXX, Director of XXXX, Department of Psychology
From: XXXX XXXXX
Date: March XX, 2019
Re: Transfer Student Programs in the Department of Psychology
In today’s society, it is becoming ever more important to earn a postsecondary credential in order to be financially successful. This is important not only for individuals, but also for local, state and national economies. While the traditional pathway to a baccalaureate is still alive and well, the majority of new students are beginning their higher education careers at two-year institutions (Rhine et al., 2000). This shift is a result of many factors including rising tuition, increased educational requirements for entry level-jobs, and more low-income and first-generation students enrolling in postsecondary institutions. As the number of students beginning at two-year institutions continues to grow, it is becoming more important than ever to consider the crucial role community college transfer students play in increasing baccalaureate degree attainment levels. This importance is evidenced by the Obama administration’s 2009 American Graduation Initiative that emphasized a priority on community college education, including four-year degree attainment rates for community college students, as a means for America to regain the highest proportion of college graduates in the world (The American Graduation Initiative, n.d.).
Even though the role of community colleges and their students has gained prominent national attention, academic outcomes and achievements for community college students are still well below those of their four-year peers. There is much work left to be done to achieve the goals set out by the Obama administration and increase degree attainment levels of community college students. To explore the work aimed at increasing transfer student outcomes I have chosen to assess the work being done by one department at a large, research intensive university. First, I will provide an overview of the current state of baccalaureate achievement for community college transfer students and the challenges they face in higher education. Then I will provide an overview of the programs aimed at increasing academic achievement and retention of transfer students developed by the Department of Psychology at the University of Washington as well as how these programs fit into the P-20 pipeline. I will conclude with an explanation of the challenges these programs face in effectively serving their entire transfer student population and recommendations to improve the effectiveness of these programs.
Overview of Transfer Student Outcomes
Over 80 percent of new college students who begin higher education each year at a community college indicate that they intend to earn at least a bachelor’s degree (Horn & Skomsvold, 2011). Yet only 16 percent of these students earn a bachelor’s degree within six years (Shapiro et al., 2016). These numbers are even lower for non-traditional students–only 7.5% of students who begin at a community college when they are 25 years or older complete a bachelor’s degree within six years (Shapiro et al., 2016). These numbers suggest that community college transfer students face significant barriers to earning a bachelor’s degree.
Overview of Challenges Transfer Students Face
Students who transfer from community colleges are more likely than their four-year peers to be low-income, first-generation college students, and students of color (Wood & Moore, 2014). These student populations are only continuing to grow in higher education, especially at the community college level where open admission policies and low tuition rates attract traditionally underrepresented populations at disproportionate rates. There is an extensive amount of literature about the challenges these student populations face. As these students progress to four-year colleges their identity as a transfer student carries a unique set of challenges compared to native students.
The primary challenges transfer students face, as identified by Wood and Moore (2014), are “transfer shock, college adjustment, student persistence and attainment, credit acceptance and articulation issues, and work-life balance” (p. 275). Transfer shock is characterized by the significant drop in GPA transfer students often experience during their first term at a four-year institution. Even though transfer students have previous college experience, the adjustment to a new institution can be difficult. Four-year colleges tend to be larger, have less of a focus on teaching and learning, and have a younger student body than community colleges. These differences in campus climate coupled with lacking supports for transfer students create a systemic challenge transfer students need to overcome, which negatively impacts persistence and degree attainment. Another large structural challenge that has significant negative impacts is the lack of up-to-date and well publicized articulation agreements that allow transfer students to avoid tacking coursework that will not be accepted by the four-year institution. This lack of information can increase time to degree and reduce overall graduation rates for transfer students. Since transfer students are more likely to be older, work full-time, and have dependents, challenges of work-life balance are often more prominent. This challenge is often compounded by university structures which only offer student services and classes during traditional business hours (Wood & Moore, 2014).
Overview of Psychology’s Transfer Student Programs
Major-Based New Transfer Student Orientation
Transfer student major-based orientations have been offered at UW for the past five summers in partnership with the UW’s First Year Programs (FYP) office which is responsible for all new student orientations. The traditional new transfer student orientation is one day and consists of a variety of sessions geared toward orienting students to their new campus, helping students connect with their peers, and getting students registered for their first quarter. All of these sessions are university wide and combine students from a variety of majors. The one exception is a 45-minute one-on-one meeting with an academic advisor, typically in their intended major, with the goal of completing an initial transfer credit evaluation, establishing a coursework plan, being oriented into the department, and registering for their first quarter. This 45-minute meeting is the only interaction transfer students have with their departments during orientation.
In contrast to the traditional model, the Department of Psychology, as well as five other departments, offer major-based orientations for their incoming fall quarter transfer students during. While the traditional orientation model seeks to orient new students to the university, a key aspect of the major-based orientation is that it aims to orient new students to their department as well. These orientations have some components of the traditional model, but have many more sessions hosted by the department that are catered to the specific needs of transfer students pursuing the competitive psychology major. The department-focused sessions include: an alumni panel consisting entirely of previous transfer students, opportunities to meet departmental faculty, and information about undergraduate research opportunities (C. Perrin, personal communication, January 19, 2017).
A unique feature of this program is the extensive, individualized attention students receive from their academic advisors. Each student’s transfer transcript(s) are reviewed before their orientation session and individualized first quarter schedule recommendations are created. To complement these recommendations, space in major courses is reserved for these students. Registration for courses is done during a two-hour lab in which all three academic advisors are present to help each student through the process, answer any questions they have, and help students problem solve transcript discrepancies opportunities (C. Perrin, personal communication, January 19, 2017).
Psychology Transfer Academic Community
The Psychology Transfer Academic Community (Psych TRAC) was established in 2012. While there are Transfer Interest Groups (TrIGs) available to all incoming transfer students, Psych TRAC is the only transfer student seminar that is major focused. The goals of Psych TRAC are to help transfer students in their first quarter find a sense of community within their major department and connect them to a variety of resources on campus that can enhance their experience at UW. Psych TRAC is a two-quarter credit/no credit seminar taught by Carrie Perrin, the departmental Director of Student Services, and a group of peer leaders. The peer leaders are current transfer students who have previously taken the course and have completed at least a year of coursework opportunities (C. Perrin, personal communication, January 19, 2017).
The seminar is taught using an interactive format. A typical class meeting consists of a one hour presentation by an office on campus or a Q&A session with a panel of student affairs professionals. Examples of topics covered include: libraries, scholarships, academic support programs, career services, undergraduate research, the counseling center, academic planning, study abroad and graduate school options. The second hour consists each peer leader meeting with their group of six to 10 students, answering any questions they have, and sharing their experiences related to the resource of the week. Often in the second hour of class peer leaders take their students to a resource on campus so that students know where it is, how to find it, and how to utilize it to its fullest advantage. Examples of topics covered are: libraries, scholarships, academic support programs, career services, undergraduate research, the counseling center, academic planning, study abroad and graduate school options (K. Dashtestani, personal communication, February 10, 2017).
Significance of Programs in the P-20 Pipeline
In the context of challenges transfer students face outlined above, it is not surprising that 20% of transfer students drop out after their first term (Cejda, Kaylor, & Rewey, 1998 as cited in Wood and Moore, 2014). In order to address this staggering number, programs that offer supports transfer students need to overcome these challenges must be put in place. The literature on transfer student success recommends many strategies to help ease the transition of transfer students. Of particular relevance are Wood and Moore’s (2014) recommendations for engaging transfer students. They recommend helping students establish clear academic and career goals early, developing intensive, mandatory transfer orientations, offering a for-credit transfer seminar course, creating early alert systems to identify academically at-risk students, and connecting transfer students to peers and student organizations.
Many of these strategies are implemented in the transfer student programs offered by the Department of Psychology. Their orientation model has significant improvements over the traditional model and provides academic information specifically catered to needs of transfer students who have advanced class standing. The individualized advising helps student establish academic goals early and opportunities to form community within their major department can help ease the difficult social adjustment transfer students often have to make. These strategies are only strengthened during Psych TRAC when departmental advisors have an extended period to connect with students, help them form connections with each other, and connect them to resources that can enhance their academic and social experiences at UW.
Carrie Perrin emphasized the importance of making these connections with students that “they know we are always here” (personal communication, January 19, 2017). Krista Dashtestani, a former orientation and Psych TRAC participant, echoed this importance. She credited her relationship with Carrie as helping her get through difficult times at UW when she felt depressed, struggled with the academic rigor of UW courses, and contemplated leaving the university. Carrie was there to support her through the good times and the bad, and offer her encouragement to continue her studies at UW. Krista is now on track to graduate this spring (personal communication, February 10, 2017).
Challenges to Successfully Serving Students
Student Selection
Currently, students self-select the type of orientation they would like to attend–either the traditional model or the major-based model. This selection is made when students go on to the FYP website to sign up for an orientation date. Descriptions of both types of orientations are presented and then students select their preference and are presented with available orientation dates. If the dates presented are not feasible for the student, they select the other type of orientation (A. Albrecht, personal communication, January 23, 2017).
This method of student selection presents a cream skimming challenge. Since students self-select it is very likely that not all transfer students interested in the psychology major have access to and are able to benefit from the major-based orientation. Additionally, even though orientation is a stated requirement for all new students, this is not enforced for all students. Because students self-select it is possible that the outcomes of these programs are skewed. Self-selection bias is the failure to recognize when observed differences in groups are the result of self-selection rather than characteristics of the group or individuals within the group (Passer, 2014). In this case, it is possible that students already more likely to engage in co-curricular activities enroll in these programs and that this propensity to participate-rather than the programs- is responsible for improved outcomes. This challenge of cream skimming is further compounded in the group of students served by Psych TRAC since its students are recruited from the major-based orientation.
In order to reduce the impact of self-selection bias and cream skimming the Department of Psychology should send targeted outreach emails to all new transfer students who have indicated psychology as their intended major on their application for admission. This email should clearly explain the benefits of attending a major-based orientation, explain how to sign up for a major-based orientation, advertise the Psych TRAC course, explain how to register for Psych TRAC, and encourage students to reach out to departmental advisers if they have any questions about orientation or Psych TRAC. This would ensure that all incoming psychology transfer students have access to the same information and can make an informed decision when choosing an orientation and registering for fall quarter classes. Students who do not participate in the major-based orientation should receive an additional email with information specific to the Psych TRAC courses.
Scaling
Both the major-based orientation and Psych TRAC are only offered for transfer students who enter UW during fall quarter. While many of psychology’s transfer students begin in fall, it would greatly benefit those entering in other quarters to be able to participate in these programs as well. Although funding is not a significant challenge to scaling these programs, the amount of time required of psychology advisors – especially Carrie Perrin – is substantial. When asked why the programs were only offered in fall Carrie questioned whether the amount of time required to implement these programs in winter quarter would be worth it for such a comparatively small number of students (C. Perrin, personal communication, January 19, 2017). This is especially problematic for the major-based orientation which relies on the participation of faculty, alumni, and current students.
The first step to determining if offering Psych TRAC during winter quarter is worth the amount of time and effort required to plan them is to know the number of students who could benefit from an additional offering of the course. Since the information presented in Psych TRAC is still helpful for second quarter students, autumn quarter transfer students who did not enroll in the course should be considered in this number (K. Dashtestani, personal communication, February 10, 2017). Carrie stated that she believed the vast majority of incoming fall quarter transfer students enrolled in Psych TRAC, but no data has been collected to determine the actual numbers of students who did not enroll. The department should gather data from the Office of Admissions to determine which incoming fall quarter students indicated an interest in the psychology major. This list of students can then be compared against the list of students enrolled in Psych TRAC to determine the number of students not served. The addition of these students to winter quarter transfer students may result in a pool of students large enough to reach the critical mass necessary to implement Psych TRAC during winter quarter.
In the event that this analysis does not support the implementation of Psych TRAC during winter quarter, there are other steps the department can take to increase access to information about campus resources for new transfer students while minimizing time required of psychology advisors. Wood and Moore (2014) recommend that specialized sections of orientation be made available online. This would provide access to students unable to attend a major-based orientation due to scheduling conflicts or lack of information. UW has many technology- equipped classrooms that are able to record lectures and presentations. By holding the major-based orientation sessions in these rooms non-participants would still be able to learn about research opportunities, hear from transfer student alumni, and become familiar with departmental advisors.
A similar approach can be taken with Psych TRAC to offer a hybrid version of the course in winter quarter. The information presentations by campus partners in fall quarter could be recorded and reused in the winter quarter course. Students could watch the presentation before their weekly class meeting and then come to a one-hour class session to ask questions about the presentation and participate in the interactive portion of the course. This approach would provide winter quarter students with the same information as fall quarter students and still allow students the opportunity to connect with each other, senior transfer students, and departmental advisors. It would also greatly reduce the amount of time required of Carrie to plan the course-no time would need to be spent requesting the participation of campus partners and the amount of time facilitating the course would be cut in half.
Reliance on Partnerships with other University Offices
Although partnering with other offices on campus offers many benefits, it also presents challenges. One particular challenge Carrie highlighted is the dependence on the Office of Admissions for evaluated transfer transcripts-information that is critical to providing the individualized attention necessary for orientations to run smoothly. Without timely delivery of this information, the orientations become less beneficial for students. While Carrie was quick to highlight the wonderful work done by and relationships with people in Admissions, their problems with understaffing last year negatively impacted Psychology’s programs. The effect was so significant that some orientation dates had to be rescheduled to later dates to accommodate Admissions’ timeline for making transfer student admission decisions and evaluating transcripts (C. Perrin, personal communication, January 19, 2017).
The Office of Admissions recently announced an accelerated timeline for admitting transfer students (P. Seegert, personal communication, March 7, 2017). Since admissions decisions will be made earlier, First Year Programs will also begin to offer transfer student orientations as early as June (L. Wiles, personal communication, March 12, 2017). Although earlier admissions decisions and orientations do offer benefits to transfer students, the Department of Psychology should err on the side of caution and schedule major-based orientations later in the summer. By choosing later dates, the likelihood of negative impacts to their orientations will be reduced. Additionally, since the department reserves spaces in their major coursework for participants, later orientation offerings are not likely to impact the academic progress of students during their first quarter.
Student Hand-off
These transfer student programs provide individualized attention to students during their very first academic experience at UW. This demonstrates to new transfer students that they are visible and that they matter to the department just as much as new freshman. Nancy Schlossberg defines mattering as “our belief, whether right or wrong, that we matter to someone else” (1989, p. 9 as cited in Patton et al., 2016, p. 36). As she examined how mattering and marginality affect student development, she found that students must feel like they matter before they can be involved in “activities and programs that facilitate development and learning” (Schlossberg, 1989 as cited in Patton et al., 2016, p. 37). The individualized attention students receive during these programs goes a long way to make students feel like they matter to their department and to co-curricular programs on campus, but what happens when fall quarter is over?
Although students have been exposed to a variety of resources and student affairs staff, there is no longer anyone from the university checking in on them each week, asking them what’s going well or not so well, nor actively offering their assistance. While some students may not feel marginalized after their first quarter, students who identify as minorities may always feel marginalized (Schlossberg 1989 as cited in Patton et al., 2016). Since the transfer student population is more diverse than their native peers, special attention should be paid to transfer students to make sure they continue to feel like they matter even after Psych TRAC is over. I propose three actionable steps to increase a sense of mattering for transfer students in the Department of Psychology: sending individualized emails to Psych TRAC graduates, establishing quarterly social events for all psychology transfer students, and creating a “Transfer Students in Psychology” Facebook group.
Individualized emails. These emails should be sent bi-annually and come from departmental academic advisors since the students are already acquainted with them during the Psych TRAC course. These emails do not need to be extremely lengthy nor in-depth, but should be adapted to include information about each students’ personal experience at UW. Examples of individualization include referencing a previous conversation with the student, providing information about an opportunity the student expressed interest in, details from that student’s transcript, or asking about how a course the student is currently taking is going.
Quarterly social events. These events should be open to all transfer students in the department and should aim to (re)connect transfer students with each other, student affairs staff, and faculty. They should take place on campus or within walking distance and be held at times that are immediately before or after typical major coursework class times so that commuter students are more easily able to participate. Events should be free so that low-income students do not face a barrier to participate.
Departmental Facebook group. This group should function as a space for transfer students to remain connected with each other and departmental advisors after Psych TRAC is over. It would also provide a forum for transfer students unable to participate in psychology’s transfer student programs to form connections with other students. This space can facilitate conversations about common challenges students are facing and registration for future quarters, distribute information and event notifications of particular relevance for transfer students, provide students a forum to create study groups and share information about courses, and provide an informal avenue for students to reach out to advisors.
Lack of Assessment
Currently, the assessment of Psych TRAC is very informal and only evaluates the experiences of students while they are enrolled in the course. Since the main goals are to connect students to resources and experiences on campus as well as to help them form relationships with their peers, an additional evaluation conducted later in participants’ academic careers would be very informative. By adding a formal evaluation, the Department of Psychology could gain a much better understanding of if and how these programs are improving the university experience for their transfer students.
The department already has all psychology majors fill out a questionnaire when they apply for graduation. Since students must submit their graduation application in person with an advisor it is a great opportunity to capture higher response rates than if sent electronically (Dommever et al., 2004). This questionnaire could be altered to include questions related to the goals of the transfer student programs. By asking these questions as students near graduation, students are able to reflect on a greater period of their academic career (as opposed to just their first quarter) and can provide greater insight into the impacts of departmental transfer student programs. By having all graduating students answer the same questions it would allow for comparisons between students in the transfer programs, non-participant transfer students, and native students.
Questions to consider in this evaluation include: At what rates do program participants engage in co-curricular activities presented during the course? At what rates do program participants engage in co-curricular activities not presented during the course? Do program participants engage in co-curricular activities earlier in their UW experience than non-participants? Do program participants report higher levels of satisfaction with their academic experience compared to non-participants? How do the graduation rates of participants compare to those of non-participants? Which experiences/resources/people do participants report as most influential to their academic success?
Conclusion
Transfer students face a unique set of challenges when transitioning to their new four-year institutions and supports to overcome them are typically lacking in comparison to supports for their native counterparts. In order to increase higher education achievement and satisfaction rates for transfer students, a large portion of whom are from underrepresented populations, there is much work that needs to be done. The Department of Psychology offers transfer student programs that offer support for many of the challenges transfer students face. Although they have challenges to effectively serving their entire transfer student population, they offer a strong model for other departments to follow. It is encouraging to see responsibility for transfer student success addressed at the departmental level. By increasing outreach to newly admitted transfer students, making orientation presentations available online, providing a winter quarter version of Psych TRAC, following up with students after fall quarter, and implementing a formal evaluation process the Department of Psychology can continue to improve the academic and social experience of their transfer students.
References
Dommeyer, Curt J., Baum, Paul, Hanna, Robert W., & Chapman, Kenneth S. (2004). Gathering Faculty Teaching Evaluations by In-Class and Online Surveys: Their Effects on Response Rates and Evaluations. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 29(5), 611-623.
Horn, L., & Skomsvold, P. (2011). Community college student outcomes: 1994-2009. National Center for Education Statistics.
Passer, M. W. (2014). Research Methods: Concepts and Connections. NY: Worth.
Patton, L., Renn, Kristen A., Guido-DiBrito, Florence, & Quaye, Stephen John. (2016). Student development in college : Theory, research, and practice (Third ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, A Wiley Brand.
Schlossberg, N. (1989). Marginality and mattering: Key issues in building community. New Directions for Student Services, 1989(48), 5-15.
Shapiro, D., Dundar, A., Wakhungu, P.K., Yuan, X., Nathan, A. & Hwang, Y. (2016). Completing College: A National View of Student Attainment Rates – Fall 2010 Cohort (Signature Report No. 12). Herndon, VA: National Student Clearinghouse Research Center.
Tammy J. Rhine, Dawna M. Milligan, Lynne R. Nelson. (2000). ALLEVIATING TRANSFER SHOCK: CREATING AN ENVIRONMENT FOR MORE SUCCESSFUL TRANSFER STUDENTS. Community College Journal of Research and Practice, 24(6), 443-453.
The American Graduation Initiative: Stronger American Skills Through Community Colleges. (n.d.). Retrieved February 19, 2017, from http://www.aacc.nche.edu/Advocacy/aginitiative/Documents/ccfactsheet.pdf
Wood, J. L., & Moore, C. S. (2014). Engaging community college transfer students. Student engagement in higher education, 271-288.
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