The purpose of this phenomenological qualitative inquiry is to understand (1) how undergraduate students conceptualize their experiences through the formal academic difficulty process during their first-year, (2) the critical supports and constraints that contributed to academic recovery, and (3) the role of belonging in students’ undergraduate experience after a formal academic difficulty standing during their first year. Through phenomenological inquiry, this research explores both the collective and individual experiences of 10 undergraduate students who received a formal academic difficulty notification from their institution during their first year. Study findings uncovered that the existing academic difficulty process is effective in students’ return to good academic standing, however, may not buffer against psychological implications that influences students’ self-perceptions of belonging. This study is intended for practitioners, administrators, and scholars, by providing recommendations to improve the academic difficulty process, such as leveraging sense of belonging and engaging students in the campus community, to create a high-touch structure of support for first-year students’ navigating the formal academic difficulty process.
","abstract_html":"<p>The purpose of this phenomenological qualitative inquiry is to understand (1) how undergraduate students conceptualize their experiences through the formal academic difficulty process during their first-year, (2) the critical supports and constraints that contributed to academic recovery, and (3) the role of belonging in students’ undergraduate experience after a formal academic difficulty standing during their first year. Through phenomenological inquiry, this research explores both the collective and individual experiences of 10 undergraduate students who received a formal academic difficulty notification from their institution during their first year. Study findings uncovered that the existing academic difficulty process is effective in students’ return to good academic standing, however, may not buffer against psychological implications that influences students’ self-perceptions of belonging. This study is intended for practitioners, administrators, and scholars, by providing recommendations to improve the academic difficulty process, such as leveraging sense of belonging and engaging students in the campus community, to create a high-touch structure of support for first-year students’ navigating the formal academic difficulty process.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Huddlestun, Danielle Christine"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Education, PhD","degree_level":"Restricted to Claremont Colleges Dissertation","degree_discipline":"School of Educational Studies","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Emilie Reagan","Frank Harris III"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2026,"date_issued":"2026-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2026-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:41:17Z","subjects":["academic recovery","belonging","college transition","motivation","qualitative research","undergraduate students","Education","Educational Psychology","Higher Education"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://scholarship.claremont.edu/cgu_etd/1104","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Emilie Reagan","Frank Harris III"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Huddlestun, Danielle Christine"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2026-06-17T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["School of Educational Studies"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Restricted to Claremont Colleges Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Education, PhD"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["academic recovery","belonging","college transition","motivation","qualitative research","undergraduate students","Education","Educational Psychology","Higher Education"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://scholarship.claremont.edu/cgu_etd/1104"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The purpose of this phenomenological qualitative inquiry is to understand (1) how undergraduate students conceptualize their experiences through the formal academic difficulty process during their first-year, (2) the critical supports and constraints that contributed to academic recovery, and (3) the role of belonging in students’ undergraduate experience after a formal academic difficulty standing during their first year. Through phenomenological inquiry, this research explores both the collective and individual experiences of 10 undergraduate students who received a formal academic difficulty notification from their institution during their first year. Study findings uncovered that the existing academic difficulty process is effective in students’ return to good academic standing, however, may not buffer against psychological implications that influences students’ self-perceptions of belonging. This study is intended for practitioners, administrators, and scholars, by providing recommendations to improve the academic difficulty process, such as leveraging sense of belonging and engaging students in the campus community, to create a high-touch structure of support for first-year students’ navigating the formal academic difficulty process.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Navigating Academic Challenges: A Phenomenological Study of Undergraduate Students’ First-Year Experiences"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Emilie Reagan","Frank Harris III"],"dc:creator":["Huddlestun, Danielle Christine"],"dc:date.available":["2026-06-17T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["The purpose of this phenomenological qualitative inquiry is to understand (1) how undergraduate students conceptualize their experiences through the formal academic difficulty process during their first-year, (2) the critical supports and constraints that contributed to academic recovery, and (3) the role of belonging in students’ undergraduate experience after a formal academic difficulty standing during their first year. Through phenomenological inquiry, this research explores both the collective and individual experiences of 10 undergraduate students who received a formal academic difficulty notification from their institution during their first year. Study findings uncovered that the existing academic difficulty process is effective in students’ return to good academic standing, however, may not buffer against psychological implications that influences students’ self-perceptions of belonging. This study is intended for practitioners, administrators, and scholars, by providing recommendations to improve the academic difficulty process, such as leveraging sense of belonging and engaging students in the campus community, to create a high-touch structure of support for first-year students’ navigating the formal academic difficulty process.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://scholarship.claremont.edu/cgu_etd/1104"],"dc:subject":["academic recovery","belonging","college transition","motivation","qualitative research","undergraduate students","Education","Educational Psychology","Higher Education"],"dc:title":["Navigating Academic Challenges: A Phenomenological Study of Undergraduate Students’ First-Year Experiences"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["School of Educational Studies"],"thesis:degree_level":["Restricted to Claremont Colleges Dissertation"],"thesis:degree_name":["Education, PhD"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:41:17Z"}