1. Keeping the Momentum: Making the Leap to Success in the Middle Years
2015 Council on Academic Counseling Summit
Lory-Ann Varela, Colorado State University

2. Welcome and Appreciation

3. My Background
Academic programs formed my worldview
Worked in a variety of institutions and fields
Experiences with different populations
My sophomore year experience

4. Second-Year Transitions
New community
Multiple identities
Classes more difficult
Financial hardship
What made the difference?

5. My Five Assumptions
Honor our students wisdom
Letting go of the dazzle
More than best practices
You can handle the truth
Connections matter

6. Attrition through the Middle Years
Previous attention to 1st year
Sophomore slump in 1956
Renewed interest in 2nd year
Costs of attrition
Shared responsibility

9. What were your challenges in Year Two?

10. National study 13,000+ sophomores from 62 institutions
The Sophomore Dip
National study 13,000+ sophomores from 62 institutions
25% of sophomores experience a decline in their motivation, academic engagement, or relationships
Dip in faculty-student interactions and challenges with confirmation of major
Schreiner, L.A. (2010). Factors that Contribute to Sophomore Success and Satisfaction. In Helping Sophomores Succeed: Understanding and Improving the Second-Year Experience.

11. Feeling the internal pressure of doing well in my courses.
My Challenges: Lauren
Feeling the internal pressure of doing well in my courses.
The sense of "is this what I should be doing?" since I stopped dancing full time in order to pursue an academic career.
Feeling overwhelmed by the financial burden it places in me and my family.
~ Student from California

12. My Challenges: Dunya
The challenge for me was figuring out what study method works best for me because the work loads for my classes were different, and I had to put extra time in my studying.
~ First-generation student
from Ethiopia

13. Transition Challenges
“Increasing academic self-efficacy, student involvement, integration, engagement, and satisfaction; supporting students as they make major, career, and life purpose decisions; developing pedagogies and experiences outside the classroom that engage sophomores in relationships with faculty and staff; attending to financial and academic concerns; and responding to diverse needs of students are each important in the sophomore year.” (p. 29)
Schaller, M. (2010). Understanding the Impact of the Second Year of College. In Helping Sophomores Succeed: Understanding and Improving the Second Year Experience.

14. 2005 National Sophomore Initiatives Survey
Review of 382 institutions found that retention efforts addressed these five common goals:
Creating a sense of community
Fostering social engagement
Facilitating faculty-student interaction
Encouraging major and career exploration
Promoting academic engagement and leadership
Tobolowsky, B.F. & Cox, B.E. (2007). Findings from the 2005 National Survey on Sophomore Year Initiatives. In Shedding Light on Sophomores: An Exploration of the Second College Year.

15. Three Developmental Areas
Discovery
Who Am I: Establishing Identity & Finding Purpose
Finding Meaning in Life
Identity Development
Self Assessments
Exploration
Where Am I Going: Decision- Making & Goal Setting
Deep Learning
Connections to Curriculum
Major/Career Information
Connection
How Do I Fit In: Leadership Development & Community Involvement
Sense of Belonging & Mattering
Collaborative Learning
Group Affiliations
SECOND YEAR EXPERIENCE:
Discovery + Exploration + Connection
Academic/Social Self Efficacy
Commitment to Institution
Engagement
Varela, L.A. 2015

16. 2009 & 2014 National SYE Survey
It’s hard studying so much when you feel like your professors don’t care about you at all.
I’m just ready to be done with required courses. I’m ready to start getting into my major.
I wish I hadn’t got caught up in living the “college life.”

17. 2009 & 2014 National SYE Survey
Adjusting to living off campus was difficult in terms of finding times to study and getting along with roommates.
I would like to be more involved.
I wish I could get more help paying for school.
If there was one things I would change it would be to study harder and watch less Netflix.

18. What 2nd Years Say About “Challenges Sophomores Face”
Knowing what to do and being more independent.
I think as sophomores people expect you to have learned all the campus resources.

19. What 2nd Years Say About “Challenges Sophomores Face”
Adjusting to a bigger workload.
Many sophomores feel lonely and are confused about many things, including their major and their future careers.

20. What 2nd Years Say About “Challenges Sophomores Face”
Now that we are settled into the college experience, I think we are all becoming more independent and less reliant on our parents. It’s hard to figure out how to manage without that dependency…especially financially.

21. What 2nd Years Say About “Challenges Sophomores Face”
Since most are off-campus: staying involved and staying on top of going to class. It’s harder to find motivation and go to the library and the rec center.

22. Predictors of Thriving
4,845 responses on 2010 SYE survey from 41 U.S. colleges
Explain 57% of the variation in sophomore thriving
Students’ sense of community on campus
Interactions with faculty
Confirmation of major
Spirituality level
College debt issues
Schreiner, L.A., Miller, S.S., Pullins, T.L., & Seppelt, T.L. (2012). Beyond Sophomore Survival. In Thriving in Transitions: A Research Based Approach to College Student Success.

23. Mentors add their perspectives…

24. Mentor Voices: Challenges in Terms 3-5
Second thoughts on academic focus and/or major.
Stress regarding plans for post-graduation.
Feeling lost in the process due to lots of school work, job pressures among personal and social struggles.
Financial struggles: paying for school, rent, getting loans.
Housing, roommate conflicts, change in workload from classes.
Students sometimes find out the way they have been studying might not work for them anymore and they need to figure out a new way of studying.

25. 2008 National Survey of Sophomore-Year Initiatives
Most common initiatives:
Career planning (76.7%)
Leadership development (58.8%)
Academic advising (57.4%)
Lesser common initiatives:
Curricular learning communities (16.1%)
Peer mentoring for sophomores (16.7%)
Credit courses (14.7%)
Keup, J.R., Gahagan, J., & Goodwin, R.N. (2010) National Survey of Sophomore-Year Initiatives: Curricular and Cocurricular Structures Supporting the Success of Second-Year Students

26. How does your office serve students in the middle years?

27. Best Practices: Curricular
Classes
Specific
Targeted
Inclusive
Class Topics
Research
Diversity
Leadership
Career Development
Major Exploration

28. Best Practices: Co-Curricular
Learning Communities
Residential and non-residential
Leadership Development
Mentors
Orientation
Teaching Assistants
Research opportunities
Internships
2nd year workshops

29. September 19, 2018

30. Best Practices: Advising
Major information
Support decision-making
Provide connections
Financial resources
Present/future identities
Navigate systems
Identify strengths
“Trying to find an advisor for my major has been difficult.”
“I wish my advising for the future would have been better!”
“I would get involved with my classes more, developing a better relationship with my teachers and advisors.”

31. Best Practices: Experiences that Matter
Creating specific traditions
Class events
Ceremonies
Experiential experiences
Alternative breaks
Outdoor trips
Service events
Retreats
Bridge 1st to 2nd experiences
Summer newsletters
Websites and videos

32. Best Practices: Connections
Including families
Home mailings
Family webinars
Role models
Faculty dinners and programs
Sophomore program board
Upper class and alumni

34. The Tipping Point: Validating Experiences

35. Thriving in College
“Sophomores thrive when they are connected. Whether that connection is relational or cognitive, it serves to provide not only a source of support during transition but also a way of moving forward and gaining maximum benefit from the second year of college.” (p. 127)
Schreiner, L.A., Miller, S.S., Pullins, T.L., & Seppelt, T.L. (2012). Beyond Sophomore Survival. In Thriving in Transitions: A Research Based Approach to College Student Success.

36. Sense of Purpose, Community and Self
Major & Career
Academic
Finances
Daily Life
Engagement

37. Our Next Steps: What ideas do you have for support?
Individual efforts
Programmatic design
Cross-office collaborations

38. Thank you!