Abstract
The purpose of this study was to assess the experiences of remedial students who successfully completed one or two years of community college. The study aimed to offer educational leaders, administrators, and faculty valuable insights to assist them in creating and providing better programs and services to first- and second-year remedial students. Furthermore, the study aimed to gain knowledge of how institutions can improve practices and policies in relation to remediation. Specifically, this study aimed to gain knowledge of ways in which academic, personal/emotional, and institutional factors impact remedial college students through the students’ lived experiences. This study is unique in its nature because existing research on remedial students who completed one or two years of community college is dismal. This study will contribute to literature since this topic needed to be developed and more work is required in this particular area of research. This mixed methods study used concurrent strategy approach. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected simultaneously. The quantitative data of this study were used to inform qualitative process. The qualitative data served to surpass the limitations of quantitative research designs. The overall qualitative findings showed that students had a positive experience of interacting with faculty, counselors, family, friends, and utilizing on-campus resources. On the other hand, participants also indicated having negative experience of interacting with faculty and counselors. They stated feeling overwhelmed and stressed due to familial obligations and financial issues. Some of them also indicated facing a dire experience of utilizing such on-campus resources as tutoring, Math Activities Center, and financial aid. The quantitative findings showed that the relationship between faculty and counselors, family and friends, and library and tutoring regarding the experiences of first- and second-year remedial college students was either medium or medium to high. This shows that if students interact with faculty they are also likely to interact with counselors, if they interact with family they are also likely to interact with friends, and if they utilize library services they are also likely to utilize tutoring services. The quantitative findings also showed that there was not a significant difference between first- and second-year remedial students regarding their experiences of interacting with faculty, counselors, family, friends, and satisfaction with tutoring, financial aid, and counseling. Furthermore, the results showed that first-year remedial students on average are less likely to be satisfied with library services than second-year remedial students.