The Science of College (PDF)

The transition to adulthood is a complex process, and college is pivotal to this experience. The Science of College aids entering college students--and the people who support them--in navigating college successfully, with up-to-date recommendations based upon real student situations, sound social science research, and the collective experiences of faculty, lecturers, advisors, and student support staff. The stories captured in this book highlight how the challenges that college students encounter vary in important ways based on demographics and social backgrounds. Despite these varied backgrounds, all students are more likely to have successful college experiences if they invest in their communities. Universities have many resources available, but as this book will show, students need to learn when to access which resources and how best to engage with people serving students. This includes having a better awareness of the different roles held by university faculty and staff, and navigating who to go to for what, based upon understanding their distinct sets of expertise and approaches to support.

There is no single template for student success. Yet, this book highlights common issues that many students face and provides science-based advice for how to navigate college. Each topic covered is geared towards the life stage that most college students are in: emerging adulthood. In addition to the student-focused chapters, the book includes appendixes with activities for students, tips for parents, and methods information for faculty. Supplemental website materials suggest classroom activities for instructors who adopt this book within first-year seminars and general education courses.

This is an open access title available under the terms of a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 International licence. It is free to read at Oxford Scholarship Online and offered as a free PDF download from OUP and selected open access locations.