Abstract

Institutions of higher education have shifted their focus from access and enrollment to creating more effective institutional conditions that lead to academic success, persistence, retention, and completion. Academic coaching has surfaced as a promising support concept in higher education, and to date, little empirical research exists on the subject, especially within community colleges. Guided by Schlossberg's (1989) theory of marginality and mattering, this qualitative study explored first year students' mattering experiences, perceptions of academic coaching and belonging at a southeastern community college in the United States. This study contributed to an understudied area of research for a distinct student population. The findings of this study demonstrated that first-year students, who did report initial feelings of marginality, but who also received support from an academic coach reported a strong sense of belonging and mattering on campus, helping them to overcome feelings of marginality and to persist.

Notes

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Graduation Date

2021

Semester

Fall

Advisor

Cox, Thomas

Degree

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)

College

College of Community Innovation and Education

Department

Educational Leadership and Higher Education

Degree Program

Educational Leadership; Higher Education Track

Format

application/pdf

Identifier

CFE0008842; DP0026121

URL

https://purls.library.ucf.edu/go/DP0026121

Language

English

Release Date

December 2024

Length of Campus-only Access

3 years

Access Status

Doctoral Dissertation (Campus-only Access)

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Restricted to the UCF community until December 2024; it will then be open access.

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