Strong Starts, Supported Transitions and Student Success (PDF)

The shift to mass participation in higher education is a welcome international trend. In Australia the number of young adults attempting a degree course at university has increased by close to twenty five percent in less than a decade. Campuses are becoming more culturally and linguistically diverse. More university students are coming from poorer families and disadvantaged educational backgrounds. The authors of Strong Starts, Supported Transitions and Student Success celebrate the diversity of new university learning communities while recognising the challenges faced by many commencing students. This book presents research findings, strategic thinking and innovative approaches to student transitions and retention at one of Australia's newer institutions, designated "e;The University of Opportunity"e;. Drawing extensively on international scholarship and the work of retention and transition experts in North America, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand, the book provides several theoretically-informed case studies, as well as more general discussions and practical advice to academics and professional staff involved in "e;the first year in higher education"e;, and especially those practitioners working to enhance "e;the student experience"e;.