Assisting transition through an Honours College program: an Australian perspective

Abstract

The authors present a study wherein 130 students enrolled in the first Australian Honours College successfully made the transition to first-year university studies. High achieving students are provided with a specialised program to ensure smooth transition to university. Student perceptions and performance are evaluated prior to commencement, at the end of first semester and at the end of the academic year enabling changes to be made formatively, with the final evaluation measuring individual student GPA against average GPA for the program of study. Using qualitative and quantitative data, the research finds that the Honours College program provides an effective means of transition to university for high performing students. The study finds that Honours College provides high achieving students with opportunities to excel. Also, that the formative evaluation and structure of Honours College provides a means of enabling successful transition to university studies.