According to the U.S. Department of Education (2016), only 36% of first time college students enrolled at broad-access institutions graduate within six years, compared to 60% at all universities. The vital role of academic agency is universally accepted; however, debate remains over a shared definition. The purpose of this study is to determine which combination of non-academic attributes generate, grow, and support academic agency for undergraduate students at a broad-access, minority-serving “New Urban University.” Three questions are examined:
This research study utilizes a mixed-methods design divided into: Study 1, a quantitative examination, and Study 2, a qualitative methodology based on the life story method. In Study 1, a survey examining grit, self-efficacy, ethnic identity, leadership, fair academic opportunity, academic self-appraisal, and family support was administered to 63 undergraduate students. A new domain emerged for academic agency comprised of leadership, academic familiarity, and fair academic opportunity. All domains, except for ethnic identity, demonstrated significant increases in age, suggesting emergence of a continuum of growth for academic agency and other non-academic attributes. Study 2, using a qualitative design with 12 undergraduates, is guided by McAdams’ (2001) life story model of identity adapted for the context of education.
","abstract_html":"<p>According to the U.S. Department of Education (2016), only 36% of first time college students enrolled at broad-access institutions graduate within six years, compared to 60% at all universities. The vital role of academic agency is universally accepted; however, debate remains over a shared definition. The purpose of this study is to determine which combination of non-academic attributes generate, grow, and support academic agency for undergraduate students at a broad-access, minority-serving “New Urban University.” Three questions are examined:</p> <ol> <li>Which attributes define academic agency, and how do they relate to conceptually similar variables?</li> <li>Assuming academic agency exists along a continuum over time, is growth affected by age, pivotal life experiences, or both?</li> <li>What role can institutions of higher learning play in creating pivotal life experiences to foster growth of students’ academic agency?</li> </ol> <p>This research study utilizes a mixed-methods design divided into: Study 1, a quantitative examination, and Study 2, a qualitative methodology based on the life story method. In Study 1, a survey examining grit, self-efficacy, ethnic identity, leadership, fair academic opportunity, academic self-appraisal, and family support was administered to 63 undergraduate students. A new domain emerged for academic agency comprised of leadership, academic familiarity, and fair academic opportunity. All domains, except for ethnic identity, demonstrated significant increases in age, suggesting emergence of a continuum of growth for academic agency and other non-academic attributes. Study 2, using a qualitative design with 12 undergraduates, is guided by McAdams’ (2001) life story model of identity adapted for the context of education.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Galea, Karen"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Ph.D. Doctor of Philosophy","degree_level":"Dissertation - Public Access","degree_discipline":"Community Psychology","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Bradley Olson"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2017,"date_issued":"2017-06-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2017-06-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T03:20:44Z","subjects":["academic agency","undergraduate","urban university","life story","growth continuum","multi-ethnic identity","self-efficacy","Community-Based Research","Community Psychology","Educational Sociology","Higher Education","Race and Ethnicity"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://digitalcommons.nl.edu/diss/292","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Bradley Olson"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Galea, Karen"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2018-03-22T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Community Psychology"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Dissertation - Public Access"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Ph.D. Doctor of Philosophy"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["academic agency","undergraduate","urban university","life story","growth continuum","multi-ethnic identity","self-efficacy","Community-Based Research","Community Psychology","Educational Sociology","Higher Education","Race and Ethnicity"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://digitalcommons.nl.edu/diss/292"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["According to the U.S. Department of Education (2016), only 36% of first time college students enrolled at broad-access institutions graduate within six years, compared to 60% at all universities. The vital role of academic agency is universally accepted; however, debate remains over a shared definition. The purpose of this study is to determine which combination of non-academic attributes generate, grow, and support academic agency for undergraduate students at a broad-access, minority-serving “New Urban University.” Three questions are examined:
This research study utilizes a mixed-methods design divided into: Study 1, a quantitative examination, and Study 2, a qualitative methodology based on the life story method. In Study 1, a survey examining grit, self-efficacy, ethnic identity, leadership, fair academic opportunity, academic self-appraisal, and family support was administered to 63 undergraduate students. A new domain emerged for academic agency comprised of leadership, academic familiarity, and fair academic opportunity. All domains, except for ethnic identity, demonstrated significant increases in age, suggesting emergence of a continuum of growth for academic agency and other non-academic attributes. Study 2, using a qualitative design with 12 undergraduates, is guided by McAdams’ (2001) life story model of identity adapted for the context of education.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["The Undergraduate in the “New Urban University”: Recognizing the Role of Agency and its Correlates in the Student’s Academic Life Story"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Bradley Olson"],"dc:creator":["Galea, Karen"],"dc:date.available":["2018-03-22T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["According to the U.S. Department of Education (2016), only 36% of first time college students enrolled at broad-access institutions graduate within six years, compared to 60% at all universities. The vital role of academic agency is universally accepted; however, debate remains over a shared definition. The purpose of this study is to determine which combination of non-academic attributes generate, grow, and support academic agency for undergraduate students at a broad-access, minority-serving “New Urban University.” Three questions are examined:
This research study utilizes a mixed-methods design divided into: Study 1, a quantitative examination, and Study 2, a qualitative methodology based on the life story method. In Study 1, a survey examining grit, self-efficacy, ethnic identity, leadership, fair academic opportunity, academic self-appraisal, and family support was administered to 63 undergraduate students. A new domain emerged for academic agency comprised of leadership, academic familiarity, and fair academic opportunity. All domains, except for ethnic identity, demonstrated significant increases in age, suggesting emergence of a continuum of growth for academic agency and other non-academic attributes. Study 2, using a qualitative design with 12 undergraduates, is guided by McAdams’ (2001) life story model of identity adapted for the context of education.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://digitalcommons.nl.edu/diss/292"],"dc:subject":["academic agency","undergraduate","urban university","life story","growth continuum","multi-ethnic identity","self-efficacy","Community-Based Research","Community Psychology","Educational Sociology","Higher Education","Race and Ethnicity"],"dc:title":["The Undergraduate in the “New Urban University”: Recognizing the Role of Agency and its Correlates in the Student’s Academic Life Story"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Community Psychology"],"thesis:degree_level":["Dissertation - Public Access"],"thesis:degree_name":["Ph.D. Doctor of Philosophy"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T03:20:44Z"}