An exploration of student success and satisfaction using the National Survey of Student Engagement
Institutions of higher education around the country are concerned with student performance and retention. This dissertation used the theory of sense-of-community to explore how universities and colleges can influence student grade point averages and persistence to degree completion. Data were collected with the National Survey of Student Engagement at a Midwestern University. Factor analysis suggested four factors of sense-of-community within the National Survey of Student Engagement: Campus Social Milieu, Divergent Thinking, Institutional Involvement, and Relationship Quality. Results of further analyses indicated that sense-of-community influenced student satisfaction primarily through Relationship Quality and Campus Social Milieu. Sense-of-community also had a slight influence on student success. Campus Social Milieu, Relationship Quality, and Institutional Involvement seemed to affect grade point average; Relationship Quality and Institutional Involvement seemed to affect degree completion. Institutions wishing to assist the increase of academic achievement and graduation rates in addition to students’ satisfaction with their experience in college are advised to invest in programs and policies building sense-of-community among their students, faculty, and administrators.
Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations