Most colleges and universities are interested in increasing student success and implementing strategies to do so (Tinto, 1999). In recent years, this focus and related efforts have also translated to the higher education policy environment (see, e.g., Lee et al., 2011; Reyna, 2010; Shapiro et al., 2012). From 1995 to 2009, first-time, first-year student enrollment in U.S. higher education increased by approximately 48%, and an additional 11% increase is projected by 2020 (Hussar and Bailey, 2011). While greater enrollment is a move in the right direction, some of the established completion goals such as the College Board’s “55 by 25,” which seeks to have at least 55% of those aged 2534 with a college degree by 2025 (Lee et al., 2011), cannot be realized through increased enrollment alone. At this time, approximately 22% of first-year college students do not return for their sophomore year at public Ph.D. granting institutions (ACT, 2011). Certainly, efforts must include expanding access, gaining a better understanding of student attrition, and enacting data-driven efforts for student success. While there are many important college student sub-populations (e.g., freshmen, transfers, adult students), this study focuses exclusively on first-year students entering higher education. Much has been published on this population regarding pre-entry characteristics that are potential barriers to PreEntry Attributes, Goals and Commitments, Experiences their success, including race/ethnicity, family background, and preparation previous academic and achievement (Bowen, Kurzweil, and Tobin, 2005; Horn, 1998; Ishitani, 2003, 2006; Lotkowski, Robbins, and Noeth, 2004; Nuñez and Cuccaro-Alamin, 1998; Riehl, 1994; Tinto, 2006; Walpole, 2008). Our understanding of student learning and development in college has been informed largely over the past two decades by research that demonstrates the predictive power of time spent engaged in educationally purposeful activities, that is, student engagement (e.g., Astin, 1993; Carini, Kuh, and Klein, 2006; Kuh, Cruce, Shoup, Kinzie, and Gonyea, 2008; Pascarella and Terenzini, 1991).
