ABSTRACT
New Student Orientation programs are offered in nearly all colleges and univers - ities in the United States (Frost, Strom, Downey, Schultz & Holland, 2010; Mayhew Vanderlinden, & Kim, 2010). Orientation programs provide students with opportunities to learn the college-specific “norms, attitudes, values, and behaviors” (Braxton, Hirschy & McClendon, 2004 as cited by Braxton, Doyle, Hartley, Hirschy, Jones, & McClendon, 2014, p. 89). Successful transition to college is essential for student success and retention (Mayhew et al., 2010). Susan Aud, from the National Center for Education Statistics, and her colleagues report that “only about 60 percent of first-time, full-time degree-seeking college students at four-year colleges actually earn a degree within six years, and only about 30 percent of first-time, full-time students at two-year colleges earn a certificate or associate degree within three years” (as cited in Karp & Bork, 2012). Almost 50 percent of students who drop out of college do so during or after their first year (Morrow & Ackermann, 2012, as cited in Blau & Snell, 2013).
