A Meta-Analysis of the Impact of First-Year Seminars on College Student Retention: Measuring the Volunteer Effect
Author(s): Brown, R., & Taylor, Z.W.
Citation: Brown, R., & Taylor, Z.W. (2025). A Meta-Analysis of the Impact of First-Year Seminars on College Student Retention: Measuring the Volunteer Effect. Journal of The First-Year Experience & Students in Transition, 37(1), 101-115.
Abstract
At many institutions of higher education, first-year seminars are meant to help students transition to college life and to provide them with resources and skills to develop socially and academically, supporting persistence (Jamelske, 2009; Janz, 2004). Since their inception, researchers have evaluated the effectiveness of these seminars and their ability to reduce first-to-second-year attrition (Barefoot et al., 1998; Berry, 2014). In this study, extant literature addressing the efficacy of semester-long first-year seminars for reducing attrition was reviewed using meta-analysis, extending the work of Permzadian and Credé (2016). The meta-analysis included 74 effect sizes from 37 institutions with a total sample size of 92,508 students. Moderators of interest included contact hours per week and quality of research design. The results suggest first-year seminars helped retain students, but when selection bias was controlled for, these gains were nullified. Implications for policy in higher education and suggestions for future research are also discussed.
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