The Path to Persistence: How Highly-At-Risk Students Persevere to Graduation Day

  • Alexis Kaine Straub

Student thesis: Master's ThesisMaster of Science (MS)

Abstract

This phenomenological study looked at highly-at-risk college seniors who exhibited four out of the eight risk factors defined by the institution where the study took place. The purpose was to gain insight into how highly-at-risk college seniors persist to graduation by discovering what protective factors they utilized in their college career as well as the role resiliency and/or grit may have played. The participants were five undergraduate students who were enrolled at a mid-sized, public university in the rural Midwest. They responded to questions in one semi-structured interview designed to capture their experiences about college starting from high school until their anticipated graduation date. The findings confirm previous research which found that highly-at-risk students adequate support from a variety of sources in order to be a successful college student. In addition, these supports are most effective when they are unyielding. Furthermore, these ‘persisters’ often exhibit intrinsic motivation, grit, and resiliency -- the spirit of getting back up after setbacks. The findings also demonstrated that there is still more to be done to help highly-at-risk students to persist.
Date of Award2020
Original languageAmerican English
Awarding Institution
  • Eastern Illinois University
SupervisorCatherine L Polydore (Supervisor)

ASJC Scopus Subject Areas

  • Education

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