Academic Persistence

There is a gap in the academic literature which addresses the strategies utilized by English Language Learners in order to persist in career or technical education. The current literature on academic persistence and retention focuses on barriers experienced by the student, the institution as a barrier to academic achievement, success strategies in general, and counseling as both a barrier and a success strategy. This book builds upon the existing knowledge base of student persistence by narrowing the focus to a specific population: African immigrants and refugees who come from war-torn or unstable nations and are enrolled in a post-secondary career and technical education program. Students enrolled at a technical college were interviewed to discover which strategies they are utilizing or have used in order to persist in their studies. Three categories of success strategies emerged: programs and services offered by the college, social networks, and motivators. These findings will assist college counselors, educators, and administrators to determine which programs and services can best assist at-risk and other non-traditional groups of students to persist in post-secondary education.