Hesa
Hesa
U.S. College Students Literature Review: Using Targeted Peer Mentorship to Improve Retention
Dan Dunne
U.S COLLEGE STUDENTS LITERATURE REVIEW 2
Introduction
Throughout each academic year, a higher education institution will face countless
challenges with students, faculty, and administration. Arguably, however, one of the challenges
most vital to an institution's continuous growth and survival is the successful onboarding of first-
year students. Depending on how well an institution can guide students through this transition, a
significant decline or growth in the overall student retention will result. Providing additional
forms of support, such as an early partnering of students with a peer mentorship program, can
This literature review will analyze current institution-wide trends and research findings
related to the effectiveness of mentorship programs utilized within higher education institutions.
This paper will focus specifically on how the use of peer mentorship programs can be useful in
positively impacting marginalized groups, such as first-generation students and minoritized black
students, who statistically have the lowest first-year retention rates. Through gaining a better
understanding of how to support learning, build community, and improve retention for these
Target Populations
Before investigating the trending statistics that support the application of a programmatic
intervention like peer mentoring, it is first essential to specify which student populations these
initiatives will seek to support. The following two demographics of students are separate, but as
with any intersecting demographics, these populations may be more entangled then previously
thought. With taking this overlap into account, the intersection of these two student populations
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represents some of the most highly vulnerable incoming students who would be well suited for
First-Generation Students
First-generation college students are defined as “students from families where neither
parent had more than a high-school education” (Pascarella et al., 2004, p. 249). Besides, often
being the first in their family to attend a higher education institution, these students are often
struggling against multiple social and economic factors that rarely impact most traditional
students. Although first-generation students' college persistence rates are 15% lower than their
provides the most significant pathway to upward mobility for these students and their families
One of the biggest challenges for first-generation students attending a higher education
institution as the first in their family comes from the lack of preparation and context-setting that
is often taken for granted by students whose parents attended college. This lack of guidance from
family as well as high school counselors is a massive factor in their overall college readiness,
academic self-concept, and can lower their own expectations of attainment. First-generation
students are also less likely to participate in extracurricular activities, due to often having to
commute to and from campus from a family home. They are also more likely to be working part
or full-time while attending college (Grace-Odeleye & Santiago, 2019). For these reasons, a first-
generation student could see many advantages to having an additional academic partner in their
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Minoritized Students
Black, Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, and Native American students make up the
population of the minoritized student demographic. Over the past fifty years, these minoritized
students or people of color, have been enrolling in college in considerably larger numbers every
year (Stewart, 2013). Making broad statements on the entirety of the widely varying and
culturally independent groups that belong within the moniker of a minoritized student is not a
minoritized group that has nothing to do with race or culture. A student may belong to a
minoritized student group simply due to their socio-economic status, the designation of their
For this review, the term minoritized student will be focused on the African-American or
minoritized Black student demographic. This focus on a smaller portion of the entire minoritized
student body is because, as studies in this review show, these students have much to gain through
Community College, Angela Long (2016) says that minoritized Black students also represent a
significant percentage of the broad minoritized student population, accounting for around a third
of the minoritized student populations represented on campus. When considering this large
percentage of students in conjunction with the statistic that approximately 32% of minoritized
Black students experienced degree completion within six years of study, it is clear that this
demographics. As more first-generation students and students of color begin to attend college,
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archaic support structures have become less effective in impacting these new populations. This
failure to accommodate the incoming student population often results in a smaller pool of
applicants and struggling retention rates of these susceptible groups. The issue is multifaceted.
Investigating what the literature has to say about the decreasing enrollment and retention rates is
an important place to start. However, what is less obvious, but essential to research in these
deteriorating trends, are the reasons why these numbers are decreasing and what needs to occur
In the last several years, numerous higher education institutions have shown decreases in
Education Data System (2018) website, overall student enrollment in post-secondary institutions
has been steadily decreasing since 2010-2011. Why is this happening? Potentially this is because
the view that the “American Dream” is attainable through education has become more difficult
for many groups to believe due to lack of access, societal divisions, and limited resources (Long,
2016).
When considering these falling statistics in conjunction with the shifting demographics of
the current higher education student population, issues of access, cultural background, and
affordability play prominent roles in the enrollment trends of specific minoritized groups. In
Megan Zahneis’s 2019 article titled Why Has Black-Student Enrollment Fallen, she describes
how the pool of black public-high-school graduates available to enroll in higher education
institutions has fallen dramatically from 2010 to 2017, resulting in the decrease of nearly
365,000 black-college students enrolling during that time. According to Kuh and his colleagues,
there are significant disparities found in high school graduation rates and college readiness
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between Whites and Blacks (Kuh et al., 2007). There is little doubt that if these trends endure,
there will be a continued widening of racial inequality within our higher education system.
When these challenging enrollment trends align with decreasing retention rates at the
same institutions, a small pool of potential graduates becomes even smaller. According to a
recent article in The Chronicle of Higher Education, more than ten percent of the US college
student population has dropped out with some college credit before receiving a diploma (Kirp,
2019). When students attempt to accomplish a degree and have to “stopout” or dropout before
reaching their goals, it speaks a more substantial problem regarding the lack of support they
receive during their studies. Research has also shown that “stopouts”, which start as an
interruption to the pursuit of a degree, have a repetitive effect, thereby making it less likely that a
What causes a student to terminate the pursuit of their degree goals may relate to forces
outside of a student’s control, thereby impeding upon their ability to retain. These forces impact
first-generation and marginalized student groups at higher rates than other student groups, as
shown in one example by Bean and Metzner’s (1985) model stating that “students’ reports of
financial difficulty were positively related to attrition from college” (p. 503). For these students,
financial difficulties, family obligations, or any of the numerous social barriers that students in
these demographic groups have to face are often more prevalent in their lives than in other
student groups. These challenges can have a detrimental impact on their ability to persist.
Many scholars credit the low enrollment and low retention rates to the students’ actual or
perceived lack of support and connection both before and after enrollment at a higher education
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backgrounds do not initially have a strong motivation to achieve academically and need to be
convinced of their fit within an institution by intangibles like respect, fair treatment, support
programming, and a strong sense of belonging. Regarding minoritized students who have the
highest risk of dropping out of college without these intangibles, Osei (2019) says, “Black
students have to work harder to create a sense of community because they are a minority group
on campus” (para. 10). This subtle, but impactful decreased sense of belonging among these
vulnerable groups, should be a cause for concern for every institution. With a decreased sense of
community support, students begin to feel more and more isolated and may begin to believe that
Vincent Tinto’s well-known 1993 Theory of Student Departure model speaks to the
structural and normative integration that influences many students as they acclimate into the
college system. However, when considering the motivators for minoritized and first-generation
students, Jacqueline Fleming in her book Blacks in College states that it is “the impact of
relationships and interactions that motivated Black students to succeed in college, essentially by
establishing a sense of belonging among professors, advisers, counselors and their peers”
(Fleming, 1985 as cited by Long, 2016, p.45). If the research is continuously noting the
importance of relationships in the persistence and academic success rates of these vulnerable
groups, initiating a student support intervention that utilizes relationships with others on campus,
order to ensure maximum impact on the populations they serve, they need to be targeted and
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consistently reviewed for their effectiveness. For example, when enhancing the success rate of
African American males, institutional characteristics like the access to mentoring and other
within student activities; are all used as viable predictors of student success (Long, 2016). This
increased desire for connection is why institutions need to require students in these higher
retention risk groups to participate in these relational support offerings. In the next section,
research will show how mentoring programs have been used effectively in the past, some of the
benefits and drawbacks, and how these programs can support groups that need them the most.
Higher education institutions have the good fortune of having an endless supply of
engaged and eager minds looking for experience. Institutions have long since utilized this
resource by recognizing that these minds can serve to support other students on campus who are
struggling to adapt academically and socially. Since the early 1700s, college and university
campuses have utilized undergraduate students to assist peers academically (Materniak, 1984).
Many of these programs had casual and relatively simple origins. Study groups, learning
communities, and academic fraternities all served to provide academic and interpersonal support
between peers. As Tinto suggests, “involvement in academic or social programs and increased
faculty and peer contact, regardless of major, have been identified as important for institutional
The variability of styles, priorities, and personalities that can occur within student
mentoring relationships often make overseeing these programs difficult. One way to standardize
these relationships is through researching the roles and characteristics of mentors. Colvin and
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Ashman found five specific roles in their 2010 mentorship study: connecting link, peer leader,
learning coach, student advocate, and a trusted friend. When assessing and training senior
student mentors, a mentor must know how to move effortlessly between these roles throughout
Benefits
provides clear intentions, role definition, and ongoing support from administration. As Snowden
& Hardy (2012) have shown, “the mentor enables the mentee to engage in the academic
community quicker, and more efficiently” (para. 8). The benefits of providing a quick adoption
into the university system through a peer mentoring relationship can help a new student in both
The number of potential benefits that can be taken from a successful mentorship program
are immeasurable. As Campbell and Campbell (2007) described mentoring of at-risk college
students allows for a student to be more comfortable within their new educational environment,
improves the student’s motivation to succeed, and provides higher aspirations than those who
went without mentors (Campbell & Campbell, 2007). Although these benefits are not always
evident and tangible for research, the intangible benefits of peer mentorship can serve as a bridge
oversight. As stated earlier, operating primarily on a peer-to-peer level would allow for the
mentoring program to fully utilize one of the most beneficial resources that an institution has at
its disposal.
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outcomes. However, as Maryann Jacobi shows in her 1991 article, despite a growing body of
empirical research there are numerous conflicting definitions of what the outcomes,
characteristics, and distinctions are concerning the mentoring relationship (Jacobi, 1991).
Therefore, a lack of specific definition and thoughtful implementation of these programs can
prevent them from being successful and diminish from the end goal of creating a supportive
relationship for students. Budge (2006) agrees with Jacobi stating the biggest problem of
mentoring programs within higher education is “the lack of consistency in defining Mentoring
among organizations and universities that design mentoring programs” (p. 79).
As mentioned earlier, the high amount of variability in styles of mentors, often due to
inadequate training, can result in student outcomes that may detract from the effectiveness of the
program. In order for peer mentoring to achieve the desired goals of connecting those in need of
a supportive relationship at the start of their academic tenure and those who can give guidance,
program definition, active training, oversight, and management must be provided on the part of
Research shows that on average first-generation students enter the university system with
lower confidence and can gain a more significant commitment to graduate when they connect
with someone or some new support system that they deem worthwhile (Grace-Odeleye &
mentoring support system and making the program stick can be challenging initially. First-
generation students have been shown to approach mentoring with a utilitarian point of view
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compared to other students, showing they will engage in mentoring until the relationship stops
being useful to them (Mekolichick & Gibbs, 2012). For better or worse, this research puts a lot of
pressure on the mentor and program facilitators to demonstrate ongoing value to these students.
Considering the desires for a sense of belonging within the minoritized Black student
population, the positive impacts of peer mentorship could be numerous. In their article, Osei
(2019) states that these programs can support community building for these smaller populations
on campus. Depending on program definition, these relationships can also provide a culturally
recognizable role model who understands the unique challenges the new student is facing on a
deeper level by the intentional pairing of mentors and mentees. In their 2007 study, Campbell
and Campbell discovered “ethnically matched pairs remained enrolled for more semesters and
accumulated more units than did pairs who were not matched by ethnicity” (Campbell &
Campbell, 2007, p. 321). This research would look to encourage paring minoritized students
together in culturally comparable groups to improve student persistence. However, the research
in this area is lacking. Although Campbell and Campbell show a positive influence in racially
familiar pairings, there is also research that contradicts this statement, proving the exact opposite,
for reasons of expanding both the mentor and mentee’s perspectives throughout the mentoring
After assessing the utility of these programs from the research examined, conflicting
opinions on the effectiveness of these types of student support interventions emerge. Establishing
if these programs have been effective is difficult to determine, due to what has been discovered
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campuses around the country. Further research is needed when considering the specific
demographics this literature review examined and how they apply to individual institutions.
Constructing the next steps for the application of these programs from this literature review will
be dependent on each specific institution’s available resources and needs based on the incoming
student population. Regardless of this review's findings and research currently available, the
facts remain that the two populations researched in this paper both show positive influences on
their persistence from increased relational support provided by their academic institutions.
With this concept in mind, four possibilities emerge with how institutions can utilize peer
mentoring interventions moving forward. First, with the changing demographics in higher
education, most institutions will see more first-generation and marginalized students attending
their school. Therefor institutions that do not, at a minimum, have some form of peer mentoring
program described by the literature in this review, need to develop these programs.
When focused on the continued implementation of these programs, specifically for first-
generation and marginalized student groups, there can either be a reduction, continuation, or
expansion. For smaller schools with limited administrative staff and fewer financial resources to
help support these programs, it would be beneficial to utilize these resources for other student
support services versus creating mentorship programs that are not well organized. Institutions
that fit into this category should look to discontinue or reduce the size and scope of programs to
focus on the black and first-generation intersecting student demographics. This narrowed focus,
along with specific program definition, will ensure that the program is thoughtfully applied to the
smallest most vulnerable population that is possible to support with the limited resources at the
institution’s disposal.
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When continuing and expanding these programs, it is crucial to take into consideration
what the research says about participant configuration, ideal timeline, and how to scale these
programs at different sized institutions. A more in-depth look at the needs of each specific
institution and the cultural backgrounds of the students participating in these programs will
provide a better idea of how the program should be implemented within the semester and among
retention rates of first-generation and minoritized students, an expansion, promotion, and more
intentional commitment to targeted peer mentoring programs are needed. Regardless, all
institutions should continuously review the effectiveness of their peer mentorship programs,
Conclusion
Throughout this review, the research presented in the literature has shown what makes
university-mandated peer mentoring an exciting and dynamic intervention for the improvement
of an institution's most challenging retention rates. When considering the struggles that higher
education institutions are seeing with enrolling and retaining minority and first-generation
students, the push to investigate and implement a supportive and effective practice like
mentoring becomes much more apparent. Institutions can have continued success by advancing
the investigation of the literature and adapting their practices to what the research findings are
showing works with these programs. With more and more students of color and first-generation
students coming to college and universities every year, the time is now to better support them by
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